


Can't We Be Sweethearts?

by chocolateghost



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Based on a True Story, Childhood Sweethearts, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, High School, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-22
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-04-06 10:27:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 37,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14054943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chocolateghost/pseuds/chocolateghost
Summary: "Yeah Sansa's really great..." Jon trailed off. "I'm in love with her.""WHAT?!?!?!"Or, how Jon and Sansa went from strangers to friends to high school sweethearts.Based on my actual real life love story! ❤️





	1. New Kid in Town

**Author's Note:**

  * For [asongforjonsa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/asongforjonsa/gifts), [Jiya](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jiya/gifts).



> Some time ago I had mentioned to Jiya and Kelly that my wife and I were high school sweethearts. They were both immediately like, "OMG THAT'S SO CUTE YOU HAVE TO WRITE THAT INTO A FIC!" So I sat on it for a bit thinking it might be a bit too personal, but then I decided fuck it. This story needs to be told and it is perfect for Jonsa. So I'm gifting it to you two lovelies for the encouragement to go through with it.
> 
> I'm going to try to keep this story as true to life as possible. Some things may be omitted or changed due to personal reasons or sheer irrelevance. Some things may be slightly exaggerated. At the end of every chapter I'll let you know just how well the story holds up to real life.
> 
> I will be altering various character ages and relationships as I see fit for the sake of the story. Some may be a bit out of character. Just go with it. For now, just know that Jon and Sansa are the same age. Robb is a few years older. Arya is a few years younger.
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Sansa sat in Mrs. Dustin’s honors science class patiently waiting for 1st period to start. She was excited to be taking all honors classes this year. An excellent student, Sansa had high ambitions to one day be the class valedictorian. She had the drive and determination and was extremely stubborn. Her eyes were on the prize and she would stop at nothing to get it.

 

Right now though, Sansa really just wanted class to start. Robb had dropped her off at school a bit earlier than she would have liked, but at least it gave her time to say hi to her friends. She had lived in Winterfell her whole life and knew almost everyone in her year. Mrs. Dustin’s class held a number of her friends and acquaintances.

 

While staring at the clock willing it to move faster, Grenn sat down in the seat next to her. He was always good for a laugh so they got to talking. Lost in conversation about what they both did over the summer, Sansa barely registered a boy walking into class. Glancing over she realized she had never seen him before. The boy looked around nervously before moving to sit in the seat directly in front of her.

 

_He must be a new kid!_

 

He was dressed rather plainly with short hair so dark it was almost black. Sansa studied the new kid for a moment as Grenn turned to talk to another student. From the way the boy slumped his shoulders, he seemed a bit sad. Sansa wondered what that must be like. She had never had to change schools before. Reaching down to get a pencil from her bag, she caught sight of what the boy was wearing on his feet. A huge grin spread across her face.

 

The boy was wearing checkerboard Vans.

 

_Oh my god this kid is awesome! Those shoes! Ugh, he’s way too cool for me. I’m just a dork._

 

The bell rang, startling Sansa from her thoughts. All through class she found herself constantly distracted. Her eyes just couldn’t help but admire the back of the new boy’s head as she tried to figure out how she could possibly approach him. Or if she even dared to.

 

_What about, “Hey man, love your shoes. New in town? Wanna be friends?” No that’s stupid. Ok, when the bell rings just stop him and say hi. It can’t be that hard. He may be really cool and you’re a nerd, but come on. You have no trouble making friends and talking to people. Why should this be any different?_

 

Deep in thought, Sansa was taken by surprise as the bell rang signaling the end of class. The new kid scrambled out of his chair and made a break for the door before she could even open her mouth.

 

_Crap! Way to go Sansa. Oh well. Maybe he’ll be in another one of your classes. Or if not, there’s always tomorrow. Yeah. Tomorrow. Wait! I don’t even know his name! UGH!_

 

*******

 

It was official. Jon absolutely hated the 8th grade. He’d given it a fair chance and he was more than ready to call it. He hated the school. He hated the town. He hated the fact that he had to leave all of his friends behind in Queenscrown. He just about hated everything these days.

 

He was lonely. That was the real issue. A month had passed and so far Jon still had no friends to show for it. Not that he was all that surprised. Being the new kid sucked. He had done it once before when he was little, but this was so much worse. Little kids make friends easy. Teenagers don’t. Especially when you’re as quiet and shy as Jon.

 

_How am I supposed to make any friends? I don’t know how to talk to people. I can’t just go up to a table and be like, “Hi I’m Jon, can I sit with you? Oh and by the way can you maybe let me in on all your inside jokes? Thanks.” Fuck, I just hate this shit!_

 

Once again, Jon sat by himself in the cafeteria during lunch. He was starting to get used to it. Or at least as used to it as one could get. When he first came to Winterfell he had hoped against all hope that some whimsical group would find him and claim him as one of their own. So far, they hadn’t. And everyday he felt like his chances were getting slimmer. The stigma of being new branded him as an outsider.

 

Jon just wanted to get the hell out of that room and on to class. As he hunched his shoulders and nibbled on his peanut butter and jelly sandwich, Jon’s eyes darted around the room. He took in the sight of seemingly every other kid eating and laughing with their friends. He tried not to stare too long at anyone. He didn’t want to bring attention to himself.

 

Looking around a bit more, his eyes settled on Sansa Stark, the annoying redhead in his science class. She was sitting with Gilly, Jeyne, and Sam. They were clearly enjoying their time together.

 

_Ugh. Sansa. She’s always talking in class and being annoying. She thinks she’s so smart. Just shut up for once. Not all of us are as good at stuff as you. She probably doesn’t even know I exist. I bet none of those kids do. A month in and I know everyone’s name and they probably couldn’t even remember mine if they tried. It’s not that hard, it’s just one name! I have to learn like a million, the least they could do is remember my one. But no, I’m just “The New Kid.”_

 

Jon couldn’t help but feel jealous as he watched the four of them laugh about something. Sansa had plenty of friends and he had none. From what Jon could tell, she was well liked in school. She could get along with just about anyone. _But not me I guess._ He shook his head, not wanting to dwell on the jealousy. _Just hurry up and finish Jon. The faster you’re done, the faster you can get out of here._

 

Choking down the rest of his lunch his eyes caught Sansa looking at him. He foolishly thought for a second that she might wave him over. Instead she just blushed and looked away, giggling with Gilly over something. _Probably me._ Jon let out a defeated sigh and got up to throw his trash away. He left the cafeteria without looking back.

 

_I hate my life._

 

*******

 

Sansa couldn’t believe the last day of school had snuck up on her so fast. It felt like just yesterday she was sitting in Mrs. Dustin’s class for the first time. Now her and her fellow classmates were signing each other’s yearbooks.

 

While waiting on Val to finish signing her book, Sansa saw Jon talking to Grenn out of the corner of her eye. She chewed on her bottom lip nervously. The entire school year had passed and she had never talked to him. She hated herself a little bit. She had promised herself she was going to, but she always chickened out at the last minute.

 

Technically she would be lying if she said she had _never_ talked to him. They had exchanged pleasantries a few times during class and worked together on a project briefly, but nothing ever went beyond the surface. He was always polite, but he didn’t talk much. Sansa was normally so confident and sure of herself, but something about him made her self conscious. She couldn't put her finger on it. She just had no idea what to do.

 

She had felt so bad for him all those days he used to eat lunch by himself. Sansa had wanted to bring him over to her table with her friends, but she just didn’t know how to do that. At some point, Jon had started talking with Grenn and his friends Edd and Tormund. Now they sat together during lunch and Sansa was pleased that Jon didn’t seem to be so lonely anymore.

 

Just as Val was finished with hers, Jon and Grenn switched back their yearbooks. Sansa knew that this was her chance. Taking a deep breath she walked over to him.

 

“Hi Jon,” she said with a nervous smile.

 

He looked up from his book at her warily. “Oh, hi Sansa.” The smile he gave her looked more like a grimace.

 

“Wanna sign my yearbook?” _Please, please, please say yes!_

 

“Yeah sure, but only if you sign mine. I mean, if you want to of course,” he said, looking back down.

 

“Obviously!”

 

Taking his book and opening it to the right page, Sansa hesitated. She had no idea what to write. She didn’t want to be one of those people that wrote something that sounded fake or stupid. In the end, she just decided to write her name in her normal neat script. She saw that Jon had done the same in hers. Only his handwriting was much messier.

 

“Have a great summer, Sansa. See you next year,” he wished with a smile that Sansa just knew was genuine.

 

“Yeah you too,” she nearly whispered as he walked away. Sansa didn't know why, but she swore she could feel her heart melting in her chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reality Check:
> 
> I was the new kid in 8th grade. My wife took an immediate liking to me. She really loved my shoes. Can't go wrong with checkerboard Vans! She actually thought I was way too cool for her. I can assure you all that despite my shoes I was not cool whatsoever. I thought she was extremely annoying and talked way too much. I'm probably playing up her attraction to me a bit at this point, but it was certainly there. We legit never really talked the entirety of that year. We did sign each other's yearbooks though and we still have them to this day.
> 
> As for my loneliness at lunch, that may be slightly exaggerated. I sat by myself for quite awhile, but I can't say for sure how long. I decided to simplify some friendships for the sake of this story, but in reality I bounced between a number of people before I found my true friends. We'll explore those relationships a bit more in the future.
> 
> Will Jon and Sansa ever actually talk to one another? Find out next chapter in freshman year!


	2. I Can Tell That We Are Gonna Be Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summer had treated Jon well. After the veritable hell that was 8th grade, he felt that he had more than deserved a long relaxing break. Thinking about it though, he had made a few friends over the year, so maybe it hadn’t been so bad after all.

 

Jon had met Tormund in their geography class. Tormund had taken an immediate liking to him after they were paired up on a project together. Jon wasn’t so sure about him though. Tormund was loud and boisterous, not to mention blunt. Why would this guy possibly like quiet shy Jon? Tormund had said he saw great potential in him and had introduced him to his friends Edd, Pyp, and Grenn. Grenn recognized Jon from Mrs. Dustin’s science class and the two of them connected instantly.

 

Jon had been so relieved to finally have a group of people to sit with at lunch. When the school year ended they all made tentative plans to meet up over summer, but Jon didn’t think much of it. He had been shocked when Tormund called his house and invited him to a poker night. He’d never played before, but Tormund told him he would probably be great seeing as he never smiled anyway. Turns out Jon was not great at poker and the guys took him for quite a bit of money. Graciously, the guys decided to take pity on him and give his money back since it was his first time.

 

He’d had a good time that night and saw them quite a few more times over the summer. With autumn closing in, Jon was very excited to see the guys regularly again, even if he was a bit nervous to start high school. He’d heard that freshman year could be hard, but he wasn’t too worried.  _ I already lived through the worst year ever. This should be a cakewalk. _

 

*******

 

Sansa was more than ready to begin her freshman year. She had gotten hold of the list of classes for every year. She’d spent quite a bit of time meticulously planning out her strategy all summer and was ready to start making gains toward her goal of valedictorian. From Pre-AP to AP classes, she wanted that credit and knew how to get it. She hated to toot her own horn (in public) but she was the smartest kid she knew. Sansa was confident that if she could maintain her already superb GPA there was no way she wouldn’t be giving a speech from the podium at graduation.

 

When she wasn’t planning the rest of her life, she was hanging out with Jeyne, Sam, and Gilly. As well as her big brother Robb, his friend Theon, and her little sister Arya. She actively tried to not think about a certain broody boy with the coolest kicks the cave. It didn’t work very well.

 

More than once while alone in her room, Sansa found herself opening the yearbook to his signature, tracing the messy curves with her fingers. She would then turn to his picture and admire his cute face. She didn’t even care that the smile he gave was fake. She was still living off the high of that smile she got from Jon on the last day of school.

 

She wouldn’t admit it to anyone, even under torture, but Sansa was absolutely dying to see him. He was her little secret. Even he had no idea.  _ Oh, it would be so sweet to see him once again at school. I hope we have a class together. Ugh, why did I have to chicken outlast year? Why didn’t I talk to him? Maybe we could have exchanged phone numbers or something. _ Jon just seemed so freaking cool and mysterious. Sansa wanted to know everything about him. Once again Sansa promised herself that this year she would finally talk to him.

 

*******

 

The first day of school had finally arrived and so far Jon had no classes with any of his new friends.  _ It’s just second period, chill the fuck out. _ He recognized most of the faces in Mr. Martell’s literature class, but had never talked to any of them before.

 

There was an alphabetical seating chart and Jon found himself sitting next to Samwell Tarly. Jon hadn’t had any classes with Sam last year, but he knew that he must be smart. Why else would he want to hang around with Sansa Stark so much? Jon wasn’t very keen on this arrangement, but hoped that Sam wouldn’t be as bad as his annoying friend. 

 

“Hi, I’m Jon,” he said as he sat down at his desk.

 

“Sam,” the boy squeaked. “Nice to meet you.”

 

_ He seems a bit quiet and shy like me. Maybe this won’t be so bad after all. _

 

The rest of the day flew by. Edd was in his algebra class and Tormund in his gym class. Before he knew it, he was walking into the last class of the day. 6th period Westerosi history with Ms. Tarth. He was actually looking forward to it. Jon’s favorite subject was history. He loved learning about all the old battles and the kings and knights that took part.

 

He knew that none of his friends would be in the class with him, but he figured the subject matter would be more than enough to keep him entertained. Looking around the room however, he was not pleased to see a great number of students he disliked all in one place. Alliser, Janos, Dany, Melisandre... The list could go on and on. 

 

_ Great. Just great. This just had be the class with the most annoying people in it. At least I’ve been spared Sansa. _

 

Jon looked at the seating chart and found his to be towards the back of the room facing the board. He took his seat and waited for the bell to ring.  _ Ok all the dumb kids are over on the other side of the room. Maybe I can ignore them. _ The bell rang, shaking Jon out of his thoughts. Just then a familiar pile of red hair bounded in the door. The girl underneath looked frazzled beyond all belief. Jon sighed audibly and rolled his eyes.

 

_ Goddammit. Figures. _

 

*******

 

Sansa’s 5th period class had let out a bit late. It was on the complete opposite end of the building to her history class. She had to nearly run to make it there on time. Popping in just as the bell rang she panted, trying to catch her breath. Sansa scanned the room looking for an empty seat. She groaned internally at the sight of the rest of the students in the class. While she did get along well with most people, Sansa was not very fond of a number of those sitting in this very room. Especially Dany. Her eyes eventually found the lone empty desk on the other side of the room and she moved towards it. Just as she was about to sit down she became distracted by the face she had been staring at in her yearbook earlier that morning.

 

_ How did I not noticed him before? _

 

Jon Snow was sitting on the other side of the room with his eyes locked on her. He tilted his head to the side and smirked as Sansa continued to hold eye contact. Ms. Tarth cleared her throat, breaking Sansa out of the trance she was in. She muttered an apology and quickly sat down. Unfortunately, the way the desks were arranged, her desk practically faced the object of her distraction. She spent most of the period sneaking glances at Jon’s profile.

 

_ Whew! I was so worried I wasn’t going to have any classes with him. I’m so happy! Wow, summer was good to him! He looks tanner and look at his hair! He’s grown it out! Oh my god it’s so cute! Those curls! Ugh. How am I ever going to pay attention in this class? This is going to ruin all my carefully laid plans. Maybe if I just talk to him I can get whatever this is out of my system. Then I’ll be able to concentrate. _

 

*******

 

The year moved by fast and Jon was just trying to keep up. Despite all his worries about the horrors of freshman year, he found himself actually enjoying it for the most part. It certainly helped that he had friends this year. He and Tormund had grown very close and Sam was becoming a fast friend as well. 

 

By late March, Jon found that he could tolerate most of the kids in history class, with few exceptions. Ms. Tarth liked to make up random seating charts for a couple months at a time. When she revealed her last arrangement for the year, Jon had to bite his tongue to stop the groan from escaping his lips. For the next two months or so he would be sitting right next to Sansa.

 

To say he wasn’t very excited about it would be an understatement. Although, he had noticed throughout the year that she hadn’t been nearly as annoying as she had been last year.  _ Maybe she just doesn’t have any friends in this class. Or maybe she’s changed. Either way it’s just one hour a day for like two months. I can do that standing on my head. We probably won’t talk anyway. _

 

A couple weeks passed and Jon found that he rather enjoyed this new seating arrangement. It was toward the back of the room away from Ms Tarth’s eyes and Sansa mostly kept to herself. They exchanged pleasantries here and there and maybe briefly talked to one another about an assignment or test, but nothing more than that. But one Friday, things changed.

 

It was a catch-up day. The class was given free reign to work on whatever needed to be done in order to prepare themselves for the end of the year. With half the class time remaining, most students had finished their work and were talking amongst themselves. It seemed the volume was slowly increasing because of one specific person.

 

Daenerys Targaryen.

 

Dany, as she liked to be called, was one of the most annoying kids Jon had ever had the displeasure of meeting. If he thought Sansa was bad, Dany was the worst. She thought she was the queen of the school. She could drone on and on about the stupidest things. All of her friends ate it up, but Jon hated it. It was going to drive him insane if he didn’t do something to stop the noise.

 

He was just about to reach down to pull his ipod out of his bag when he heard a scoff and a mumbled curse next to him. Stopping mid-reach, he glanced up and met Sansa’s eyes.

 

“Wait, what did you just say?” he asked, unsure if he’d heard her correctly.

 

“Oh, uh, nothing,” she blushed and waved her hand dismissively.

 

“No seriously, Sansa. Did you just say what I think you said?”

 

“Yeah,” she grumbled, looking down.

 

“Holy crap, Sansa Stark are you kidding me!?” Jon had a goofy grin on his face.  _ I can’t believe this! _

 

“Is it really so hard to believe that I don’t like Dany?” She said softly trying to keep her voice low. “She’s the absolute worst.”

 

“I know! She’s awful, but I just didn’t think…”

 

“What?”

 

Jon shook his head. “I don’t know. I just thought you were this goody two shoes that liked everybody. I guess I was wrong.”

 

“Well  _ Jonathan _ , there’s a lot of things you don’t know about me.” She winked at him then and he wondered where this Sansa had been hiding. He could get used to her. “Also, I’m pretty sure that was the most words you’ve ever said to me.”

 

Jon smiled and shrugged in response, refusing to say anything else.

 

“See, now there’s the Jon I know and love.” Jon chuckled as her eyes got big and she turned away, seemingly embarrassed. “And uh, speaking of shoes, I really like your Vans. They are so cool!”

 

“Hey thanks! Yeah they’re great. Very comfortable and awesome,” he said with a bit of a blush.  _ Nobody’s ever complimented my shoes before. _

 

“So what were you reaching down for earlier?” She asked with a bite of her bottom lip. “Sorry. I shouldn’t be prying-”

 

“No that’s fine. I was just going to listen to some music before class ended. That way I wouldn’t have to hear all that mess over there,” he finished with a roll of his eyes.

 

“What are you going to listen to?”

 

“Probably The Who. They’re my favorite band.” 

 

“No way! I love The Who!” She exclaimed happily.

 

_ She does? _

 

“You do?”

 

“Yeah! My dad always plays the classic rock station on the radio. Me and my siblings are all obsessed with it. We listen all the time!” She had a big grin on her face. Jon couldn’t help but smile back. It was absolutely infectious.

 

_ Holy shit. There is no fucking way Sansa Stark likes classic rock. What the fuck is happening?  _

 

Jon cleared his throat before speaking. “Well in that case, did you want to maybe listen with me? That way we both won’t have to hear the dragon on the other side of the room.”   
  


“I would love that, Jon. Thanks.” The soft smile she gave him as he handed over an earbud made his heart beat fast.

 

He scrolled through his song list for a moment to find the right one. Her eyes twinkled when she recognized the intro to “Baba O’Riley.” 

 

“Oh, I love this song!”

 

As she bobbed her head to the music and mouthed the words, Jon could hardly believe his eyes.  _ I may have misjudged you Sansa Stark. _

 

*******

 

Sitting in the audience at her big brother’s high school graduation, Sansa couldn’t help but feel a bit sad. She had always been close to Robb. She hated the idea of him going off to college somewhere and leaving her. She wanted him to stay and be here forever.  _ Who else is going to help me with my problems and have fun with me? Arya? As if! _

 

At least they’d have all summer before he left. They could hit up all their favorite local haunts. Peanut Road, the Gates of Hell, Crybaby Bridge, the Baby Doll Tree, and all the rest. Robb always looked out for her and would occasionally bring her and Jeyne along with him and Theon on their adventures.

 

Sansa blinked a few times, willing away the tears that threatened to spill. Her eyes eventually settled and focused on a familiar mop of dark curls sitting a few rows in front of her.

 

_ No. It couldn’t be him. Why would Jon be here? _

 

Sansa’s disposition immediately brightened as she thought about her new friend. She was so happy that Ms. Tarth had stuck them right next to each other. All of those suspicions she’d had about him were correct. He  _ was _ super cool. By the end of the year, Sansa was almost ready to call Jon one of her best friends. They just got along so well. Turns out they had quite a bit in common.  _ Ok after this is over I’m gonna go talk to him. NO MORE CHICKENING OUT! You’re friends now. You can do this. _

 

Once the ceremony ended and the seniors threw their hats in the air, Sansa raced down to catch Jon before he left.

 

“JON! JON! WAIT UP!”

 

Hearing his name, he stopped and whipped his head around. Recognizing her, he smiled and waved while waiting for her to catch up to him.

 

“Hey Sansa. How are you?”

 

“Oh, I’m fine. My brother just graduated. Are you here for anyone?”

 

Before he could answer though, he was interrupted by an annoying sound she heard all too often at home. 

 

“OI SANSA WAIT UP!” She turned her head to see her little sister vaulting down the bleachers in their direction.

 

“Arya! I’m trying to talk to my friend. Sorry Jon, this is my little sister,” she said giving him an apologetic look.

 

“Friend? Hey man, nice shoes. Why would you want to hang out with Sansa? You seem pretty cool and my sister is not.”

 

“ARYA!” Sansa could feel heat flooding her cheeks.  _ UGHHHH! She always ruins everything! _

 

“What did I say?”

 

Jon was glancing back and forth between them laughing.

 

“You know Sansa, I think I like this one,” he said pointing his thumb at Arya.

 

Before Sansa could explain just as to why he should absolutely not like her, Robb and her parents made their way over to them.

 

_ Come on! Can’t I just have one moment alone with him? _

 

“Hello kids! Who do we have here, Sansa?” asked her father, eyeing Jon up and down.

 

“Mom, dad, Robb, this is my friend Jon. Jon meet my mom, dad, and brother.”

 

Jon shook all their hands. “Nice to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Stark. And you too Robb. Congratulations on graduating.”

 

“Oh please, call me Cat. Will you be coming to Sansa’s party next weekend?” Her mom asked with a smile.

 

“Mom! I haven’t got the chance to ask him yet!”

 

“Oops, sorry dear. Well we’ll leave you two kids alone for a minute. We’ll be outside by the wolf statue, ok?” 

 

Sansa nodded. Jon once again exchanged well wishes to them all. Sansa shot Robb a thankful look as he dragged Arya away. Finally, they were blissfully alone in a room filled with over a hundred people milling all over.

 

They stared at each other awkwardly for a moment until Jon broke the silence. “So you’re having a party?”

 

“Yeah! I was gonna tell you about it, but then Arya and all that. Anyway, yes. Just some people over at my house the weekend after school gets out. We’ll have pizza and ice cream and watch movies and stuff. Do you think you might want to come?”

 

_ Please say yes please say yes please say yes… _

 

“Umm, I don’t know. Maybe. I’ll have to check with my mom.”

 

Sansa tried not to feel crestfallen.  _ A maybe isn’t a no. He could still come. He just needs permission. That’s perfectly reasonable. It’s not the end of the world. _

 

“No yeah that’s totally fine. Here, let me give you my address and phone number. Let me know what your mom says, ok?” She asked hopefully as she wrote down the information on a forgotten program someone had left behind.

 

“Sure, Sansa. Well I should probably get going. Want me to walk you out to your family?”

 

_ OH MY GOD HE DID NOT JUST OFFER TO WALK ME OUT!!! Who says chivalry is dead??? _

 

“Yeah that would be great,” she said hoping her voice didn’t betray her inner giddiness.

 

Sansa did her best to quell her nervous excitement as they chatted and walked toward the entrance. Jon held the door open for her and they met up with her family at the statue as promised.

 

“Do you need a ride, son?” Her dad asked him.  _ Say yes, Jon! You can sit by me! _

 

“No, I live just a few blocks away. It’s a nice night, think I’ll walk.”

 

Sansa was disappointed. “Ok, bye Jon. See you soon!”

  
Jon wished them all a good night and walked off. Sansa had trouble tearing her eyes away from him as he left. It wasn’t until he rounded the corner that she shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts.  _ I’m hopeless. If he’s going to come to my party, I’m really gonna have to get a grip. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reality Check:
> 
> I did make a few friends in 8th grade, but nothing to the extent Jon does. My first poker night with the guys didn't come for a few years later. And those sons of bitches definitely did not give me my money back. :(
> 
> My wife can plan class schedules like nobody's business and absolutely wanted to be the valedictorian. So what Sansa does is pretty close to real life here. I'm totally making up all that yearbook nonsense though. She may have had a bit of a crush on me at this point, but Sansa is in way deeper than my wife was.
> 
> I met my very own Sam in my freshman English class. He and the guy I've based Tormund on are still two of my best friends to this day.
> 
> Unlike Sansa, my wife was not late to class and she definitely did not stare at me. Nor I her. Like Jon, I did grow my hair out over the summer and kept it relatively long for the next few years. Unfortunately for me, I do not have amazing Jon Snow/Kit Harington curls. Looking back, my hair was awful and I cut it before senior year began. Jon will be keeping his hair though, so nobody freak out!
> 
> This is absolutely how my wife and I became friends. Our teacher sat us together at the end of the year and we bonded over hating just about every other kid in class. Not to mention, we both loved classic rock and in particular, The Who. Dany is not really based on anyone. Just an amalgamation of different people I knew at the time.
> 
> Unlike Jon, I was not present at the graduation. I met my wife's family at a different event, but I felt this was easier to portray. Jon had no one to support there, so my head canon for Jon attending graduation was just because he was bored. My wife's little sister totally burned her when I first met her and I instantly liked her for it. By the way, all those local haunts I mentioned are real and were teenage legend at the time. We might just see a few pop up in future chapters. ;)
> 
> Friendship will continue to blossom during sophomore year! Tune in next chapter to find out if Jon attends Sansa's party or not!


	3. Won't You Let Me Walk You Home From School?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon and Sansa reconnect after summer vacation at the beginning of sophomore year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was originally going to make this a super long chapter, but I decided to break it into two instead. The next installment should be out by the end of the week. :)

As far back as he could remember, Jon had always hated the first day of school. Going from a relaxing summer to a busy fall was one of his least favorite things ever. However, there was another reason he was anxious about his first day of sophomore year. It was entirely to do with a certain auburn-haired girl.

 

Getting to know Sansa the last few months of freshman year had been an incredible experience. She had caught him completely off-guard. For so long he had pegged her as a stuck up know-it-all who was one of the most annoying people in school. How very wrong he had been. Sansa was so different than almost everyone else he knew. Sure, Tormund and the guys were great and Sam was awesome too, but there was just something about Sansa. Jon couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

 

They just seemed to click together. They had so much in common. Music, movies, TV shows, a dislike of most other students... Ok, maybe it wasn’t a whole lot to go on. And true, they didn’t really know each other that well. But what Jon did know was that Sansa was super easy to talk to. There was a mutual understanding there that he had never experienced with anyone else. He felt extremely comfortable around her and it was all so strange to him. After all, Sansa was a girl.

 

Since hitting puberty, Jon and girls did not mix well. He found that as his hormones raged and he became more and more attracted to the opposite sex, the less and less he could say to them. It became easier to clam up and admire them from a distance, rather than try to approach and talk to them. He was horribly afraid of saying something stupid and embarrassing himself when all he really wanted to do was impress them. But who would possibly be impressed by Jon? He didn’t think he had much going for him. And to be perfectly honest, he was not looking for any romance at the moment.

 

The best part about Sansa was that he didn’t have to worry about any of those things. She was a girl that also happened to be his friend. Romance was not apart of the equation and he was grateful for it. At the same time though, it made him nervous. This thing with Sansa was all so new and exciting and Jon was not someone to jump into new things willy nilly. He constantly hesitated and second guessed himself. That was a big part of the reason why Jon did not go to Sansa’s party over the summer.

 

He just couldn’t bring himself to do it and for that, he hated himself a bit. At the graduation Sansa had been dripping with nervous excitement to invite him. He knew she wanted him to come and Jon hated the thought of disappointing her. Especially when he had no real excuse not to go. Other than crippling self-doubt, of course.

 

No matter how much he liked her, it did nothing to quell his anxiety. Sansa just had so many friends. Jon assumed he would’ve been absolutely miserable if he had gone. He was afraid of being left alone in favor of all the other people she most definitely invited. In the end he just decided that it was better to just not go. Damn the consequences.

 

Unfortunately, that didn’t stop Jon from completely regretting his decision the minute he had made it. To make matters worse, he hadn’t even called to tell her he wouldn’t be there. He just couldn’t stand the thought of hearing her disappointed voice trying to convince him to come. Not to mention the possibility of having to talk to one of her family members. YIKES! So instead, he just left her in the dark. Was it a total dick move? Yes. But he had made his bed and he intended to lie in it.

 

Jon had done his best to mentally prepare himself for the likelihood of Sansa’s wrath. She came off as the type that disliked being scorned. So that morning he had given himself a pep talk in the mirror before coming to school. He was more than ready to apologize as much as necessary. She might hate him. She might never want to talk to him again. It was something he’d have to face.

 

His mind raced and his stomach filled with pterodactyls as he walked into school, eyes darting every which way trying to keep a lookout for Sansa. He made it through the halls unscathed before finding his locker and fiddling with the combination. He had just managed to get it open when he spotted her. There was no time to hide. Sansa had definitely seen him and was walking toward him with a look of determination on her face. _Ok, this is it. At least she’s not going to ignore you. Just apologize and don’t be an ass about it. There’s not much else you can do at this point, Snow._

 

Jon braced himself against the locker for a veritable onslaught of words. Instead he was thrown for a loop when she put a big smile on her face and hugged him tightly.

 

“Jon! How was your summer? I missed you!”

 

_What the hell? Did I just dodge a bullet or what?_

 

“Uh, it was great? Thanks. How was yours?” He did his best to reciprocate the hug despite his confusion.

 

“My summer was great! Thanks for asking!” Her smile then morphed into a stern look. “Speaking of, why didn’t you come to my party, mister!?”

 

_I knew it was too good to be true. Shit!_

 

*******

 

She hadn’t meant to, but once Sansa saw Jon in the hallway, she couldn’t resist running up and hugging him. She wanted to be mad at him. She _should_ be mad at him. She hated herself a bit for her body’s involuntary reaction to him, but she had just missed him so much.

 

Sansa had been so excited at the prospect of seeing Jon over the summer. In the car ride home from the graduation, Arya wouldn’t stop teasing her about him. She made kissy noises and kept calling him her boyfriend. Sansa had no choice but to tell her off and unfortunately that got her parents asking about him. She had been mortified that Jon was no longer her little secret. But now that her family knew about him, it all felt real.

 

She hadn’t been able to stop smiling as she planned the guest list and itinerary for the party. Sansa wanted Jon to feel as welcome as possible, so she’d planned for just close friends and a few others to be there. Sam had told her that he and Jon had become well acquainted over freshman year. She chalked that up as a huge win. That way either herself or Sam would be able to keep him company at all times. The plan was practically foolproof at this point and she painstakingly awaited his call to confirm his presence.

 

But the days passed and Jon never called. Sansa’s excitement had dissipated quickly without his confirmation. She had held out hope till the last minute that he might walk through the door, but he never did. Sansa held it together during the party and even managed to enjoy herself some. However, later that night alone in her bed, she cried herself to sleep. Her thoughts wandered to all manner of dark places. Sansa just couldn’t understand why he hadn’t come. Did he not like her? Did he lose her number? Did something else happen?

 

She tried to put herself in his shoes. Jon was shy, but would that really stop him from coming to her party? Sansa thought that the idea was possible. He had no idea what she had planned and the care she made to make him feel welcome. If only he had phoned or given his own number she could have explained it all to him.

 

Sansa contemplated talking to Jeyne or Gilly or even her mother, but she balked at the idea. She had never talked to them about boys before and she just wasn’t ready to admit her crush to anyone yet. Jon was officially just a friend. Maybe not even that.

 

As summer went by, Sansa thought about the hurt less and less. She instead focused on enjoying her break and preparing for sophomore year. And if she just so happened to be very excited about seeing Jon again, well that was just fine.

 

That first day of school, he looked even better than she remembered. He appeared to be a bit taller and maybe even a little more fit. His curls had grown longer and Sansa had an insane urge to run her fingers through them.

 

Her body moved without her consent and before she knew it, she found herself jumping into his arms. _Why have I never done this before? He smells really really good and he’s so warm!_ Sansa decided that from that moment on she was going to do her best to try to sneak in as many hugs as possible. He would never know what hit him.

 

“My summer was great! Thanks for asking!” She gave him a smile, forcing herself away from his body. She then remembered the hurt he caused and made sure to change her face to tell him about it. “Speaking of, why didn’t you come to my party, mister!?”

 

Jon winced and looked down seemingly ashamed. “I’m really sorry, Sansa. I have no excuse. I wanted to come, but I just couldn’t do it. I was really anxious about it and I wanted to call you and tell you, but it just kept getting later and later and I just never did it. Then I felt so bad and wanted to call you to apologize, but I kept chickening out. I’m so sorry. Do you think you can forgive me?”

 

Sansa’s face softened. He looked every bit the part of a kicked puppy. After all this time she wasn’t even really that upset about it. Hearing his side of the story and seeing him now only made her feel better and so sorry that he felt so bad. There was no way she could be mad at him. In fact, she had to bite the inside of her cheek to not give him another hug.

 

“Alright, Jonathan. I'll forgive you on one condition.”

 

“Name it.”

 

“You have to hang out with me after school today.”

 

Jon pursed his lips and furrowed his brow as if contemplating something.

 

“Ok. Let’s do it,” he smiled at her and she happily returned it. This was going to be even better than him coming to her party. Sansa couldn’t wait to have him all to herself.

 

*******

 

Jon tapped his pencil against his desk as he watched the clock. 6th period was almost over and school would be out soon. He had not been planning to do anything other than relax this afternoon and now he had to hang out with Sansa. Not that it was a bad thing… Far from it. He did kind of owe it to her after ditching her party. Still though, for some reason the idea of being alone with her made Jon feel a smidge uneasy.

 

_It’s probably just because you feel bad. You left her hanging and now you have to make it up to her. What a lousy friend you are, Snow. You’re lucky she even still likes you._

 

The bell finally rang and Jon raced out to his locker. Sansa was leaning against it waiting for him.

 

“There you are! I’ve only been waiting forever!”

 

“What? How? It’s only been like a minute since school got out.”

 

“Yeah well my class was right down the hall. Mr. Pycelle let us go like ridiculously early. So there,” she said sticking her tongue out.

 

“Lucky,” Jon said as he dropped off his books and gathered the rest of his things in his backpack. “Bummer we don’t have any classes together this year, huh?”

 

“Ugh, I know! It really sucks, but that just means you’ll have to hang out with me outside of school now to get your proper dosage of Sansa.”

 

Jon rolled his eyes and closed his locker, throwing his backpack over one shoulder. “Yeah right, Stark. Just what I need to keep me going. So what do you want to do?”

 

“Well, I was thinking we could go to one of our houses and just hang out for a while. Is that ok?”

 

“Sure. Yours or mine? I mean, I live pretty close. We could walk there. Is your house nearby?”

 

Sansa fiddled with her braid nervously, “It’s not too far away, but we’d be walking a long time. You would know that if you came to the party, dummy. Since your house is so close, why don’t we just go there?”

 

“Sure. Sounds good,” Jon gulped. _I really really really hope mom doesn’t mind me bringing a friend home today._

 

The two chatted aimlessly about their first day of school on the way to Jon’s house. They lamented the lack of good food in the cafeteria and they both agreed that Mr. Pycelle was a total creep.

 

“You really didn’t know that Sam and I are good friends?”

 

“Not really,” Jon said, shaking his head. “I’ve seen you guys together at lunch and stuff, but I guess I never really thought about it.”

 

“Sam and I have been friends since 6th grade. He’s the best. He and Jeyne and Gilly and I do stuff all the time. You have got to come over and hang out with us! What about Friday?” Sansa asked him with that same tone of nervous excitement she’d had at graduation.

 

“Yeah, that might be cool,” he drifted off, his mind wandering.

 

Jon lived with his parents in a relatively nice home. While he had been against leaving his childhood home in Queenscrown, he did like this new house. It offered him more room and freedom. As a teenage boy, he relished it. He had the entire second floor to himself, mostly because it was little more than a glorified attic. Just one giant room, but it was his room to do with as he pleased.

 

_Mom is gonna be so pissed at me. She doesn’t like company. Fuck me. Why can’t I just say no to Sansa? Or “hey, today’s no good. How about another time?” It’s that easy, idiot. Now you’re gonna get chewed out by mom. Ok, deep breaths. You can do this. Maybe mom is in a good mood today._

 

Jon loved his mother. She was a very sweet woman most of the time. Unfortunately, she did have a nasty temper that would rear its ugly head at times. And Jon was deathly afraid that this would be one of those. Lyanna Snow did not like unexpected company. She always wanted notice well in advance for cleaning purposes.

 

Putting the key in the lock, Jon gave Sansa what he hoped was a reassuring smile before opening the door. _Moment of truth._

 

“Hey mom? I’m home… And I brought company,” he finished lamely. _Please don’t be mad please don’t be mad please don’t be mad._

 

His mother popped around the corner with a tight smile on her face. “Well hello there. I don’t believe we’ve met. Lyanna Snow,” his mother said sticking her hand out.

 

“Sansa Stark,” his friend responded, taking the offered hand. “You have a lovely home, Mrs. Snow.”

 

“Well thank you, Sansa. How do you and Jon know each other?”

 

“We had Westerosi history together last year and became fast friends. We’ve missed each other all summer and just wanted to hang out for a bit, if that’s ok?”

 

Jon’s eyes darted back and forth between the two. He had no idea what would happen next.

 

“Of course! Jon, why didn’t you tell me you were bringing a friend over? I could have prepared better.”

 

Jon opened his mouth to speak, but Sansa beat him to it. “Oh that’s my fault, Mrs. Snow. I kind of forced his hand a bit. Please don’t be mad at him.”

 

“Oh don’t worry yourself, Sansa. It’s no trouble. And please call me Lyanna. Are you kids hungry? Why don’t we make you a snack? Take your shoes off and come in the kitchen.”

 

Sansa did as she was bade and followed his mother in the kitchen chirping merrily. Jon was left in the foyer dumbstruck. _What the hell just happened?_

 

*******

 

If Sansa hadn’t already liked Jon before going to his house, she would have loved him after leaving. She plain and simply had the best time with him. They had eaten a snack and gone upstairs to Jon’s “lair.” It was amazing up there. She wished she had that kind of space at her house. Big comfy chairs and a nice TV and a large window for natural light. He could probably get away with anything up there. And the best part, no annoying younger siblings to bother him.

 

She saw more of the Jon she loved that afternoon. He was smart and funny and sweet and kind. Just the perfect kind of person. She hadn’t even known him all that long, but she seriously just wanted to find out everything there was to know about him. At the end of their hang out, Sansa had finally convinced him to come join her, Jeyne, Sam, and Gilly on Friday night. He seemed wary at first, but had perked up at the mention of Sam and readily agreed. Sansa absolutely could not wait. She just knew her friends would love him just as much as she did.

 

Friday came fast and Sansa was only slightly worried about the evening. Jeyne had come home with Sansa on that day to prepare for the festivities. Jeyne had been Sansa’s best friend since 1st grade. Over that time they have been able to talk to each other about almost anything. Except for one thing: boys.

 

It’s not like they’d _never_ talked about boys before, but this time was different. Jon wasn’t just any cute boy like the ones they used to giggle about when they were younger. No. Jon was a friend. A very cute friend, but still just a friend. Sansa wanted him to be Jeyne’s friend too. And Gilly’s and Sam’s. Jon could be the missing puzzle piece to complete their group. And if the day ever came when her and Jon could become more than that, well it would just be icing on the cake.

 

“So what is he like, Sansa? I mean, I know he’s quiet and shy and Sam said he was really nice, but what else?”

 

“Jon is… Jon. Yes he’s quiet and shy, but that’s only before you get to know him. Once you do, he’s really funny and sweet. Super smart and just a really good guy.” Sansa had to stop herself from gushing too much. She was afraid she’d already said more than she should have.

 

“Well you and Sam can’t be wrong. It certainly helps that he’s cute, huh?” Jeyne laughed.

 

Sansa felt a fire burn in her gut at Jeyne’s words. Panic and jealousy washed over her. _What if Jeyne tries to make a move on him? What if he says yes? I can’t watch him be with her! It’s not fair! He was my friend first! I’ll- Wait… Calm down, Sansa. She just said he’s cute. That is an objective fact. Anyone could see that. Just agree and move along._

 

“Yeah, he’s um, really cute. So anyway, I was thinking board games tonight, yeah?”

 

The doorbell rang a moment later, snapping the two of them out of their conversation. Arya’s voice boomed out downstairs, “I’ll get it!”

 

_Crap! What if it’s Jon?_

 

Sansa jumped off her bed and ran out of her room, racing down the stairs. Unfortunately, she was too late. She found Arya talking to Jon in the foyer.

 

“Well look who it is… The kid with the hair.” Jon looked up noticing her coming down the stairs and smiled. It made her heart melt just a bit.

 

“Arya, leave Jon alone. He’s here to have fun, not be annoyed.”

 

“Hey! I’m not annoying!”

 

“Yes you are!”

 

“Hey, no, it’s ok,” Jon mediated. “No worries. Your sister is cool, Sansa.”

 

Arya stuck her tongue out at her and skipped off merrily. “Are you sure she wasn’t bothering you, Jon? She can be a real pest.”

 

“Sansa, she’s just a kid. It’s fine. So anybody else here, yet?”

 

The evening went off without a hitch. Arya left them alone for most of the night and her parents were only slightly embarrassing. Jon took it all in stride, graciously thanking her parents for having them over. He even humored Arya and her odd questions.

 

Much to Sansa’s delight, her friends all loved Jon. He was a bit quiet at first, but he warmed up to them all in practically no time. They ate pizza and played a number of board games. Sansa had been very impressed with the way Jon dominated Trivial Pursuit.

 

Sadly the night had to end eventually, but fortunately Jon was the last to leave. When her other friends left, they all let her know that they thought Jon was awesome. Sansa obviously agreed wholeheartedly.

 

“Thanks so much for having me over Sansa. I had a really great time. We should definitely do this again soon,” he smiled shyly as she walked him to the door.

 

“I was just thinking the same thing.”

 

“Ok well, good night then.”

 

“Night Jon!” She called to him as he walked off to his mom’s car. She sighed and leaned against the door frame watching him go before she snapped out of her trance.

 

_Crap! I forgot to give him a hug!_

 

*******

 

The months went by and Jon and Sansa became even closer. They ate lunch together, they did homework together, they hung out all the time. Jon spent a lot more time with Sam, Jeyne, and Gilly too. They all played games and watched movies together every week. In addition to the time Jon would spend with Tormund and the guys, he was more busy with friends than he’d ever been before in his life. He reasoned that it was a good problem to have.

 

Winter came and Sansa’s 16th birthday came with it. She was throwing another party and made sure to tell him that he was coming to it. No excuses. Jon had turned 16 over the summer before school started. He had not had a party. Technically, he had never really had an actual birthday party before. He could understand the appeal, but he really didn’t like the idea of being the center of attention in that way.

 

This time he wasn’t so worried that there might be a lot of people. No - this time he was more worried about what to get her as a gift. A question he had been agonizing over for far too long. _What are you supposed to buy for a girl who is quickly becoming one of your best friends but she’s also not your girlfriend? And thank god because that would make things even more weird._

 

With a few days till the party, Jon finally gave up and just decided to go with something easy. He made her mix cd. Knowing that they basically had the same taste in music, it seemed a no-brainer to share songs with her that he enjoyed. Jon made sure to take great care in crafting what he deemed to be the perfect playlist of songs for Sansa. Hopefully she would love it.

 

Arriving at the party stirred up some of those feelings of anxiety when he noticed the small crowd assembled at her house. But he quickly shook those off when he saw a number of people he knew. He went to greet the birthday girl and hand her his gift. Jon had to admit she looked great. Her smile was absolutely infectious.

 

“JON!” She exclaimed running up to hug him. “I’m so happy you came!”

 

“What? And miss all this?” He asked into the cloud of her hair. He noticed it smelled very citrusy. He liked it.

 

Sansa pulled back and slapped his arm playfully. “Hey, I seem to remember a certain guy who skipped out on the last party I had. So I’m pleasantly surprised.”

 

“Yeah I probably deserve that, but I promise I wouldn’t have missed this for the world. Happy birthday, Sansa.”

 

She gave him a sweet smile and thanked him as he handed her his gift. He’d attempted to wrap it himself. It definitely showed. She put it on a table with her other presents and left him to greet other guests.

 

Jon grabbed a soda and slapped Sam on the back, saying hi to Gilly in the process.

 

“Hey guys, how’s it going?”

 

“Great,” Sam said smiling widely. “How are you, Jon?”

 

“I’m good I’m good. So what’s on the agenda for tonight?”

 

Sam and Gilly looked at each other and smirked.

 

“Oh you’ll just have to wait and see,” GIlly said with a wink.

 

Jon took a sip of his soda and tried to comprehend what exactly that meant.

 

The night wore on and Jon found himself having a lot of fun. Sansa’s older brother Robb had come home for the weekend to attend the party. Jon got to talking with him. He decided quickly that Robb was super cool.

 

At some point it was suggested that a game of hide and seek was in order. The Stark house was old and had plenty of nooks and crannies to hide in. When it was chosen who would be the seeker first, Jon was at a loss. He had no idea where to hide. Sansa grabbed his hand and pulled him upstairs into a closet in an old room. It looked like no one had been inside it in years.

 

The closet was small and dark as he and Sansa crouched down, trying to be silent. They were huddled close. Jon could just barely make out her face in the dark.

 

“Hey Sansa,” he whispered. “Thanks for helping me hide.”

 

“No problem,” she whispered back. “I figured you’d have no idea where to go in here. This is my favorite hiding spot. Podrick’s the seeker, so he probably won’t be finding us anytime soon.”

 

Jon wasn’t sure how much time passed in that closet. Every now and then their fingers would brush or their knees would bump together. They whispered about everything and nothing until Robb finally busted the door open, blinding them with light.

 

“I knew I’d find you here, Sansa. Come on love birds, time for presents and cake.”

 

“Shut up, Robb! We are not love birds!” Sansa’s face went red as she yelled at her brother and scrambled to get up out of the closet. Jon took a moment before getting up and joining them. _Well that was awkward. Love birds? Yeah right._

 

The rest of the evening passed by in a flash. By the time he had to leave, Jon was stuffed with lemon cake and ice cream. Sansa thanked him profusely for the cd and told him she couldn’t wait to listen to it. She gave him a big hug and a kiss on his cheek on his way out.

 

Sliding into the passenger seat of his dad’s car, he could still feel his cheek burning from where she had kissed him.

 

“Have fun at the party?” His dad asked, pulling out into the street.

 

Jon reached up to touch his cheek, his fingers grazing the spot.

 

“Yeah… It was great.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reality Check:
> 
> Yes, there was actually a party that summer and no, I did not go to it. In my defense, our relationship was still so fresh and I was extremely anxious about putting myself in a new situation like that. So I tried to make that coincide with Jon's feelings. For what it's worth, I 100% regretted not going. Unlike Jon and Sansa, my wife and I, let's call her M from now on, never talked about it after the fact and just picked up our friendship when the new school year began.
> 
> It's funny, as I was remembering things to put in this story, this party situation immediately came to my mind. When I brought it up to M, she barely even remembered it. LOL! All these years I've been placing emotional significance to an event that she apparently didn't care about at all. COME ON!
> 
> We did not go back to my house the first day of school. That didn't really happen till a little later that fall, but I was worried as all hell about my mother. To this day she REALLY does not like unexpected company. This all took place before I had a cellphone so there was no way I could warn her. It wasn't just M and I either, there was a couple other friends that tagged along with us. And just so you know, I definitely got chewed out after everyone left. :(
> 
> After much coercion, I finally went over to M's house and hung out. Her little sister remembered me from before, but did not know my name. She referred to me as "the kid with the hair" for awhile just as Arya does to Jon.
> 
> The birthday party was real as was Jon’s gift. I had no money and M and I loved all the same music, so it was the easiest thing for me to do. Plus I was super into making mixes and playlists back then. Still am actually. I'm basically John Cusack in High Fidelity. I have that shit down to a science!
> 
> I did get to know M’s older sister, played here by Robb, at the party. She was and still is super cool. We all played hide and seek, however Jon and Sansa hiding in a closet together is all for the story. That did not actually happen in real life. And there was no hugging or cheek kissing either. Awkward teenagers in a platonic relationship, people. Sorry to disappoint you. :P
> 
> Next chapter we'll see the rest of sophomore year. More friendship building, Sansa gets some wheels, and something unexpected happens! ;)


	4. One Of Us Must Know (Sooner Or Later)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bus ride, fun in cars, and an unexpected meeting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies if this is a bit of a mess. I needed to get it out and lost track of time. I'll go back through and edit it a bit later. But for now, enjoy! :)

Six hours on a charter bus to the Wall in the middle of a Northern winter was enough to make anyone miserable. Sansa, though, was having the time of her life. Jon was her seat buddy for the trip. It was the most time they’d ever spent together and she was doing her best to savor every single moment.

 

Every year the sophomore class at Winterfell High took an optional overnight field trip to the Wall and surrounding areas. They’d They’d get to spend the night in Castle Black in the restored (highly modernized) barracks just as the black brother’s of the Night’s Watch did thousands of years ago. The trip was explained as a chance to explore science and history in a fun way, but really anyone who went just did so to get out of school for a couple days.

 

There was a predetermined cost to the trip and not everyone could afford it. In fact, most of the sophomore class did not go this year. They’d only departed the high school with three buses instead of the usual seven. Sansa had been dying to go ever since she’d heard how much fun Robb had on his trip. And of course the idea of seeing the Wall in all its glory really excited her.

 

Her excitement had waned, however, when one by one all of her friends dropped out of the trip. Jeyne was sick, Sam was out of town at a funeral, and Gilly’s family simply didn’t want to pay the money. Sansa was almost prepared to bail until Jon told her he would most definitely be going. She’d never been so happy to hear those three little words: “I’ll be there.”

 

Sansa wasn’t entirely sure, but she if she had to make a ranking, being stuck with Jon for six hours on a bus probably came in at number one on her favorite things ever list. She hated to admit it, but she was almost glad that none of their other friends had been able to go. Finally, Sansa had Jon all to herself for a 12 hour round trip.

 

They talked and gossiped about everything and everyone. They listened to music together, ate snacks, and made fun of the awful movies other kids played over the bus TVs. It was amazing. Some of the most fun she’d had in a long time. _It’s just so easy. We could have this much fun all the time! We just go together. If only he could just see that…._

 

She’d thought after her birthday party that he might finally come to his senses. He hadn’t. Sansa would be lying to herself if she said that she didn’t think about that moment in the closet all the time. What if she had just kissed him? What would he have done? Would he have kissed her back? She thinks he might have.

 

Sansa had listened to the mix cd Jon made her more times than she could count. Her parents had handed down Robb’s old car to her for her birthday. His cd has been in constant rotation ever since. He was so sweet, he even included a little note with the cd explaining why he chose the songs he did. It made her fall for him a little bit more. By now, Sansa knew all the lyrics by heart and hoped and prayed that the love songs reflect his true feelings for her.

 

Sansa was not the only one Jon had made a big impression on. Robb had really liked him and Arya had gotten to the point where she wouldn't shut up about him. It was starting to become very annoying. She kind of thought that Arya might have developed a bit of a crush on him herself. Not that Sansa could blame her for it. Jon was just so… Jon. It was hard to not like him.

 

Somewhere around hour five on the trip up, Sansa felt herself getting tired. They had left Winterfell before dawn and Sansa had barely gotten any sleep the night before due to her excitement. _Maybe Jon won’t mind if I just rest my head on his shoulder for a minute?_

 

She did just that and he made no move to stop her. In fact, he barely acknowledged it. Jon just looked at her and smiled softly before closing his own eyes and resting his head on hers. For a moment she could almost believe that they were a couple. It felt right. Sansa slept with a smile on her face for the duration of the bus ride.

 

*******

 

The Wall had been freaking awesome. Jon was a history nerd so he was freaking out the whole time. Once he’d heard that the sophomores made the trip every year, Jon begged his parents for the chance to go. Knowing that Sansa would also be going was simply the icing on the cake.

 

She had been so freaked out on the elevator ride to the top of the Wall. She had practically hugged him the whole time. She told him she was afraid of heights, but desperately wanted to see the other side. Jon had told her that it was no big deal and then jokingly said that he would protect her from the white walkers and anything else that would try to get her. She really seemed to like that. The look on her face reminded him of the way she had looked at him after her birthday party.

 

He’d thought about the kiss on the cheek she’d given him for a long time after. Jon wasn’t sure what to make of it. Did she like him like him? Was she just saying thank you? It didn’t make any sense to him. No one besides his female relatives had ever kissed him on the cheek. He’d also noticed that she’d been hugging him a lot as well. Maybe she was just really affectionate with her friends? But he’d never seen her doing any of that with Sam. It all just left him confused with no idea what to think.

 

In the end he decided to just forget about it. Obviously Sansa liked him and he liked her. They were friends. That was all. And that was precisely what Jon liked about her. He didn’t have to worry about saying something stupid or being embarrassed in front of her. Jon felt like he could tell her anything. She made him feel comfortable and that was huge for him. The fact that she was a girl only made it more awesome to him. He reasoned that it might make talking to other girls he liked easier. Being friends with Sansa was a total win-win.

 

Jon couldn’t help but feel a bit sad when the bus pulled back into the parking lot of the high school. He’d had so much fun with Sansa during the trip, he didn’t want it to come to an end. He wouldn’t trade all that time with her for anything else. It was official. Jon was ready to call her his best friend.

 

*******

 

Sansa pulled her car into Jon’s driveway and shot him a quick text telling him she had arrived. It was about time that boy got a cell phone and joined the modern age. How else was she going to communicate with him?

 

She had already picked up Sam and Jeyne beforehand. Gilly was having to miss tonight’s hangout due to some weird family thing. But her absence certainly left more room in the car and more room was always appreciated.

 

Sansa loved the freedom of her car, but being the only one of her friends to have one really kind of sucked sometimes. She often found herself chauffeuring Arya around to all her practices as well as running errands. She even found herself driving Sam home more than she wanted and he lived super far away. She really needed Jeyne and Jon to just get cars already.

 

Jon emerged from his house with a wave and Sansa’s heart skipped a beat. He was so cute in a hoodie and jeans. He slipped into the backseat next to Jeyne and greeted everyone.

 

“Hey guys, where we headed tonight?”

 

“I was thinking we hit up Balerion Records and then maybe get some ice cream,” Sansa told the group. “I’m jonesing for some new music.”

 

Everyone in the car agreed and Sansa drove the car off in that direction.

 

Balerion Records was an old music shop that had been around seemingly forever. It contained just about everything a music lover could ever want or need. Wall to wall vinyl, cds, tapes, and even 8-tracks. If Balerion didn’t have it, no one did. Although they would attempt to find it for you if that was the case.

 

Sansa had long been a fan of Balerion as her dad had taken her there a number of times as he searched for old records. Introducing Jon to it had been a great pleasure of hers. He had just about lost his mind the first time he’d entered the shop. It was ridiculously adorable.

 

Balerion was on the other side of town so they had plenty of time to catch up on the drive from where they had left off from school.

 

“Hey guys, how’d you do on that science test?” Sam asked.

 

Jon groaned. “Ugh. I’m pretty sure I fucked it up. Pycelle is the worst.”

 

“You know I could help you, right?”

 

“Whatever Sansa. We’re not all top of the class here.”

 

“Speak for yourself, Jon. Just because you suck at science doesn’t mean the rest of us do,” she teased.

 

“Hey, I don’t think I did very well either. I’m here for you, Jon.”

 

“Thank you, Jeyne. Your support means a lot.”

 

Sansa knew they were just goofing around, but seeing the way Jon smiled at Jeyne in the rearview mirror made her grip the steering wheel a little bit tighter. _Chill, Stark. They aren’t dating._ With that in mind, she was able to relax and maintain an easy disposition for the rest of the drive.

 

Walking into Balerion Records, the smell of dust and incense filled her nose. She absolutely loved it. Sam and Jeyne went off on their own to browse the selection and Jon decided to stick with Sansa. Her belly did flips on the inside as she tried to keep cool on the outside.

 

“What are you thinking of getting, Jon?”

 

“Not sure. I’ve kind of been in a Rolling Stones mood lately. Maybe I’ll look for something of theirs.”

 

“That’s good, can’t go wrong with the Stones. What do you think I should get?” Sansa asked as she flipped through the bins of vinyl lining the walls.

 

“I don’t know. What are you in the mood for?”

 

“See that’s the problem. I want something new. Something I’ve never listened to before. But I’m not sure where to start.”

 

“Yeah, that’s not vague or anything,” he said, rolling his eyes. “How about we just look around for a bit and see if we can’t figure something out?”

 

After flipping through all the records and still not finding anything that tickled her fancy, they decided to search through the cds. Jon found himself a copy of the Rolling Stones “Goats Head Soup,” but Sansa still hadn’t found anything she wanted.

 

“Hey,” Jon said, looking up from a row of cds. “Have you ever listened to any Bob Dylan?”

 

“Not really. Do you think I would like him?”

 

“Absolutely. Dylan has something for everyone. Let’s see what they have here…” He ran his finger along the spines of the albums until he found one he liked. “A-HA! This one. This is a great place to start, Sansa.”

 

He handed her the album and she examined the cover. An unfocused picture of a cranky looking man with curly hair stared back at her. “Blonde on Blonde? What kind of title is that?”

 

“Classic Dylan, Sansa. You’re going to love it. Trust me,” Jon replied earnestly. If there was one thing that Jon knew, it was music. She trusted his judgement completely.

 

“Ok, I’ll get it. I did say I wanted something new. Thanks, Jon.”

 

They met back up with Sam and Jeyne and they all bought their respective albums. When they got back into the car, Sansa immediately popped her cd into the player. Right from the opening notes and lyrics of the first song she knew that Jon had led her in the right direction. Glancing in the rearview mirror, he smiled and mouthed “you’re welcome” to her as he bobbed his head to the music.

 

_Yeah I think I’m gonna like Bob Dylan._

 

*******

 

“Bye Sam,” Jon and Sansa both called after him as he walked off into his house.

 

That left only Sansa to take home. Jon was extremely grateful his mother let her drive her car. He hated that Sansa was usually the only one driving. They’d had a great night tonight hanging out at the movies and just driving around, but it was getting late. It might have been the middle of summer, but they all still had a curfew.

 

After the movie, Sansa had been trying to show him all of Winterfell’s hidden spots. Tonight they had visited Peanut Road and the Gates of Hell. Jon had to admit he was a bit disappointed in both. Sansa had touted Peanut Road as a horrifying road filled with scary things. Truthfully, it was a bit creepy, but that was mostly due to the plethora of trees that covered the road and blocked the light. Not to mention the fact that people apparently used it for a garbage dump. Bags of trash, old couches, and plenty of other things were left on the side of the road. Legend supposedly had it that bodies were dumped there after murders, but Jon didn’t quite believe it.

 

The Gates of Hell was really just a big rock formation that the road had cut through, leaving two giant pillars of stone on either side. Sansa told him that he had to hold his breath when he went through or else his soul would be sucked out of his body. He did it for her sake, but thought it was absolutely ridiculous. He’d had a great time though. And how could he not when he was hanging out with two of his best friends?

 

Jon and Sansa sat in silence with only the radio playing softly as they drove back to her house. Suddenly she broke the quiet.

 

“Jon! I have one more place to take you!”

 

He groaned. “Not somewhere as lame as the last two I hope. Besides we need to get back. It’s late.”

 

“Oh please, you loved Peanut Road. Don’t lie to me, Jonathan,” she teased, with a twinkle in her eye. “And anyway this place is on the way home… sort of.”

 

“What do you mean sort of? I don’t want to drive all over creation to find this place.”

 

“It’s not too far from Sam’s house. Take a left up here. Have you ever heard of the Baby Doll Tree?”

 

“Excuse me? What the fuck is a baby doll tree?”

 

“You’re about to find out. I’m so excited!”

 

As they drove, Sansa explained that on the edge of town there lived an older couple that really didn’t like kids. So like normal people do, they hung/nailed baby doll parts to a large tree situated at the front of their property right next to the road. Ideally, it was supposed to be a deterrent, but in reality it just attracted kids to the house, much to the chagrin of the couple. According to Sansa, a favorite pastime for teenagers was to stop in front of the house and honk the horn of their cars just to annoy the occupants.

 

“Ok that is so messed up.”

 

“RIGHT? So weird. But it is really awesome. Ok here it is up on the left. Slow down! Let’s have a look at it. Then we can turn around farther up and drive by again and honk.”

 

Jon shook his head in disagreement, but slowed down. _Might as well have a look at this thing while I’m here._

 

As he drove by, he took in the sight. This time he was not disappointed. True to its name, it was absolutely a baby doll tree in every sense of the word. All manner of parts were attached to the tree giving it an eerie appearance, especially in the dark of night. Jon drove by slowly and then turned around farther up the road so as to come back again toward the house.

 

“Slow down and stop! We have to honk!” Sansa commanded him.

 

“No way! I’m not honking at these poor people.” Despite his reservations, Jon did stop the car in the middle of the road right in front of the house.

 

“Don’t be a chicken, Jonathan. Honk! Honk now!”

  
  
“FINE!” Jon honked three times in quick succession. Not five seconds later a bright light flashed on them from the direction of the house and they heard the screaming of a man who was clearly pissed.

 

Jon and Sansa screamed in unison. “HOLY SHIT! DRIVE JON DRIVE!”

 

Jon hit the gas and peeled out, racing off toward Sansa’s house. They couldn’t stop laughing the whole way there.

 

“I cannot believe you made me do that! That was the scariest thing ever!” He said as he finally pulled the car into her driveway.

 

“I KNOW! That was so awesome. I can’t believe they shined a light on us! Just wait until Robb hears this. He and Theon are so going to freak out!”

 

Their laughter died down and they just sat there for a moment smiling at each other.

 

“I had a lot of fun tonight, Sansa. Thanks for showing me all these places.”

 

“You’re welcome, Jon. It’s been great. I guess this is good night then.” Sansa pierced him with a look he couldn’t place. It almost seemed expectant, like she was waiting for him to say or do something. _What is she waiting for? Does she want a hug? I don’t know what I’m supposed to do here. Just say goodnight. That should be fine._

 

“Yeah, uh, good night Sansa.” Jon gave her a sheepish grin which she did not return. Her face fell for a moment as she got out of the car and stalked off inside her house. She didn’t look back once.

 

On the drive home, Jon just couldn’t understand why she had looked so sad. _Girls, man. Girls._

 

*******

 

 _Another boring Saturday at the library. Ugh._ Sansa had taken a part-time job there a few months ago to make some extra cash. She needed all the money she could get now that she had gas to pay for. The job was relatively simple, mostly just helping reshelf and check out books to patrons. In her short time working there, she’d found that Saturdays were usually the slowest day. Especially when it was as gorgeous outside as it was on this particular day.

 

The lack of people to keep her busy left her with plenty of time to think and daydream. Sansa’s thoughts, as they always seemed to do, came back to Jon. All the added time spent with him over the past year really and truly endeared him to her. He was no longer just a cute boy in her class. Jon was now her best friend that she had a massive crush on. There was no two ways about it. He was on her mind all the time.

 

_He’s just the most wonderful friend anyone could have, but I want more. I want love. I want a romance just like the songs and the movies. I want to go out on a date with him. I want to know how he kisses. Obviously he’d be great. I mean, come on, this is Jon Snow! Have you seen those lips?_

 

_I bet we would have so much fun. We already get along so well. If he would only just ask me out! But he just doesn’t seem interested. Sometimes it’s like there’s something there, but he never makes a move. Am I getting mixed signals or something? I don’t know! IT’S SO DAMN FRUSTRATING!_

 

Sansa had to put her thoughts on pause for a moment as she helped a group of children check out books.

 

_What should I do? Could I really ask Jon out? What if he said no? I don’t think I could handle that. I don’t want to make things weird between us. And I don’t know, I just always imagined being asked out. That’s the boy’s job. I want someone to want me._

 

_Ugh! It doesn’t matter how much I flirt with him. He doesn’t get it. I should just face it, he doesn’t like me like that. I guess I’m not enough for him. Just accept it and move on, Sansa. Try to find someone else. No use waiting around for something that might never happen._

 

_But then I might run into the same problem! Who would want to go out with me? It’s not like boys are lining up around the corner. I’ve never even been asked out before! ISN’T THERE ANYONE OUT THERE THAT LIKES ME????_

 

As if the world heard her thoughts, a familiar figure walked into the library. Joffrey Baratheon.

 

Sansa had witnessed Joffrey come into the library almost every single day she had been working that summer. Sometimes he would come just to read or use a computer. Other times he would talk to her. Sansa was almost positive that he flirted with her and boy was she ever flattered. Jon had scattered all of her emotions and to know that someone else out there might like her, well that was just fantastic.

 

Joffrey had been in Robb’s graduating class, so he was a few years older. She’d heard he was a bright student and popular to boot. For some reason, he’d left the prestigious King’s Landing University and came back to Winterfell, enrolling in classes at the local community college instead. She’d heard awful rumors about him from her brother and Theon, but Sansa dismissed them all as hearsay. Who was she to judge him when she didn’t even know him?

 

Sansa admired his form as she watched him walk through the aisles searching for books. _Ok, I’ll admit it. He’s not Jon, but he is cute. And hey, I’m a single girl. There’s nothing wrong with looking to see what else is out there._

 

After some time, Joffrey selected his books and made his way to the front desk. He gave her a bright smile and a wink as she began scanning them.

 

“Ok, I have a confession to make,” he declared in a soft voice.

 

“Oh?”

 

“I’m not really reading any of these books I’ve been checking out over the summer. I only come here so I can see your pretty face.”

 

 _OH MY GOD!_ Sansa flushed and ducked her head, trying to hide behind her hair. “You’re just saying that.”

 

“No, it’s the truth. Haven’t you noticed me flirting with you?”

 

Sansa nodded. “I- I wasn’t sure. I just thought you were being nice.”

 

“I am very nice, Sansa. Maybe you’ll learn that one day,” he said with a wink that only increased her blush.

 

“How do you know my name?”

 

Joffrey laughed. “It says your name right here, silly.” He reached over the counter and tapped the badge on her chest. _Holy crap he just did that! My face probably looks like a tomato right now._

 

“I bet you know my name, don’t you? I was quite popular in high school after all. You’re Robb Stark’s sister, right?”

 

Sansa nodded.

 

“Robb and I go way back. How is he? Enjoying higher learning?”

 

“Umm, I think so?”

 

Joffrey gave her an easy smile. Sansa swooned a bit at the sight. She still couldn’t believe this was all happening to her.

 

“Good. So listen, I was wondering if you’d like to go out with me on Friday?”

 

Sansa was floored. “Like, on a date? You want to go on a date with me?”

 

“Of course. You are quite a beautiful specimen. Who wouldn’t want to date you?” Joffrey leaned in close, stroking his fingers across her hand. “What do you say, Sansa?”

 

She chewed on her bottom lip for a moment and thought it over. _I can’t believe a college boy wants to go out with me! And a cute one at that! What should I say? Wait, why is this even a question? Say yes you idiot! Say yes! Say yes! SAY YES!_

 

“Yes Joffrey, I’d love to!”

 

“Perfect. Here’s my phone. Why don’t you put in your number and we can figure out our plans for Friday,” he finished with a satisfied smirk.

 

Sansa happily accepted the phone and input her digits. Handing it back to him, Joffrey grasped her hand and left a lingering kiss on her knuckles before bidding her a good day, leaving his forgotten books behind. Sansa picked them up and clutched them to her chest. She closed her eyes tightly and squealed internally.

 

_Oh my god I can’t believe this! Someone likes me! BEST DAY EVER! Just wait till I tell Jeyne!_

 

Any thought of Jon was long forgotten as Sansa’s mind became consumed by all things Joffrey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reality Check:
> 
> Yeah I know you're all pissed. We'll get there. Skip to the end if you can't wait.
> 
> Obviously Westeros is not real, so there was no sophomore trip to the Wall. However, both M and I were in the school band and we made a number of long ass trips on charter buses to competitions all over the US. We spent a hell of a lot of time together on those trips listening to music and getting to know each other. You may be asking yourself, “Brad. Why not portray Jon and Sansa in band? That would have been super fun and awesome!” The short answer is, I didn’t want to. So suck it. Maybe I’ll write a Jonsa school band AU one day if you’re lucky. ;)
> 
> When Sansa mentioned that she thought Arya might have a crush on Jon. That is absolutely true to life. At some point, M’s little sister developed a crush on me. As did a number of her little friends. What can I say? Clearly I’m irresistible. :P
> 
> M was given her older sister's hand me down car once she turned 16. She was the first of us to have a car so she shuttled us around everywhere. And yes I didn’t have a cell phone until I was well into my 16th year of life. Oh how the times have changed.
> 
> Balerion Records is based off a real record store we used to frequent all the time. That place had everything and I loved the shit out of it. We spent a lot of time there searching through the bins. M and I definitely bought those albums there in much the same fashion as Jon and Sansa. Bob Dylan quickly became a favorite of M’s. Blonde on Blonde is a goddamn classic after all. Goats Head Soup, while I do love it, is not as great lol!
> 
> As I mentioned in the second chapter, Peanut Road, the Gates of Hell, and the Baby Doll Tree were all real places in our hometown that were teenage legend. They were just as I described them here. And the incident with the light flashing on us? Totally fucking happened and it scared the shit out of us! Good times! Unfortunately Peanut Road was closed off and the tree has been lost to time. A shame for future generations. *pours one out for the homies*
> 
> Ok, now the part I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for. While I’ve changed a bit of the circumstances to suit the purposes of this story, Joffrey asking out Sansa is 100% true to real life. AND IT FUCKING SUCKS! We’ll be talking more about the guy behind Joffrey in the future. For now though, just know that he was indeed roughly three years older than us and that I made him Joffrey for a reason. I am very sorry to say that this is not a nice guy we’ll be dealing with here. Unfortunately, he will be a background character for a large chunk of the story from here on out.
> 
> I know right now you might be thinking, “GODDAMMIT BRAD YOU FUCKING IDIOT WHY DID YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?????” Just remember that everything works out in the end. It'll all be fine.
> 
> With the events of this chapter, we are nearing the end of Act 1 of this story. The fun is just beginning! And by fun, I mean a shit load of mutual pining and heartbreaking angst. Buckle in folks. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.


	5. I'm Waiting For The Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Junior year. Jon learns about Sansa's new boyfriend, Halloween, Sam's birthday party, trouble at the Stark house, and prom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, a quick disclaimer. So after every new chapter I read all of your wonderful comments to M. After the last chapter, she turned to me and said, “Brad you're making it sound like I was in love with you! Yeah I was crushing, but I wasn't in love!” So just so you're all aware, M wasn't in love with me at this time. Again, I am embellishing some of this for the sake of the story. I try to hit on everything in the reality check, but sometimes I miss things. If you ever want any clarification on whether something actually happened or not, don't hesitate to ask. So now that we have that settled...

...

 

Junior year was turning out to be quite boring in Jon’s opinion. Once again, he had no classes with Sansa. It was like someone was playing a cruel joke. It was typical really. The one person he wanted to see more of and yet he couldn’t seem to get a moment alone with her.

 

They had the same lunch, but that was it. 30 minutes of Sansa time was not nearly enough to last a day. And to make matters worse, they weren’t really hanging out like they used to. Suddenly she was “busy” all the time. Jon didn’t want to be nosy, but he really wanted to know what she’d been up to. He missed his friend.

 

He reasoned that at least he had other friends to hang with in the meantime. Tormund had been off with his family on vacation for most of the summer so it was nice to have him in a few classes this year so they could catch up.

 

Jon had wanted to know all about his summer, but Tormund was only interested in talking about one thing: girls. Seems the guy couldn’t get enough of them. But there was one in particular he _really_ liked.

 

“Hey Snow, remember Ms. Tarth?” Tormund asked as he and Jon walked down the hall.

 

“Ms. Tarth? The history teacher? Yeah, she was pretty good I guess.”

 

“Pretty good? Are you kidding me? She was the best! I loved that woman. No, I _do_ love that woman. You think she’d go to prom with me?”

 

Jon guffawed. “Are you being serious?” The look Tormund shot back at him told Jon that yes, he was dead serious. “No. No Tormund, you are a student. That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. What the hell are you smoking?”

 

“Only the usual. She’s just so amazing and smart and drop dead gorgeous. And tall. Did I mention tall? Way better than old Ms. Florent. Yikes,” Tormund finished with a gagging sound.

 

“Are we talking about the same teacher here? I think you need to find yourself a real girlfriend and not just your imagination.”

 

“I could say the same about you, Snow! What about that pretty redhead you’re always hanging out with? I always knew you had a thing for us gingers…”

 

“Sansa?” Jon questioned, taken aback. _Me go out with Sansa? Ok that might be even more ridiculous than Tormund and Ms. Tarth._ “Absolutely not. We’re just friends.”

 

“Whatever you say boy. I got algebra next, you?”

 

“Lunch time for me. I’ll see you later man.”

 

“Later Jon.”

 

The cafeteria was already packed by the time Jon entered. He scanned the room, looking to see if his friends had their usual table. By some sort of miracle Sansa, Gilly, Jeyne, Sam, and Jon all had the same lunch. That had never happened before and he guessed it might never happen again. He grabbed his lunch out of the line and hurried to the table, greeting everyone. They talked about this and that for a bit before Jon decided to be bold.

 

“Hey guys, what do you think about seeing a movie this Friday?” Jon asked hopefully. Jon was never the instigator of plans, but he was feeling desperate. Too much time apart was doing a number on him.

 

Sansa looked down and furrowed her brow. “I’d love to Jon, but I can’t Friday. Maybe Saturday?” She glanced at the clock. “Crap, I have to go. We’ll talk later, yeah? Come on Gilly, we can’t be late.”

 

They gathered their trash and said their goodbyes as Jeyne went off to talk to her counselor. Jon and Sam lingered a bit, they had next class together.

 

“Sam, what the hell is going on? It’s like Sansa’s avoiding us or something. What’s she been doing?”

 

Sam looked at him curiously. “You don’t know?”

 

“Know what? Is there some kind of secret here?”

 

“I just, I assumed you knew. You and Sansa are so close. She has a boyfriend, Jon.”

 

“Boyfriend? What? Who? Since when?” Jon’s mind was racing. _How the fuck did I not know this? Why didn’t she tell me?_

 

“I don’t know if you know him. Joffrey Baratheon? He was a few grades ahead of us in her brother Robb’s class. I think they’ve been going out since the end of summer.”

 

“Really? Huh. Never heard of him. I guess that explains it, then. Wow, Sansa has a boyfriend. That’s crazy.” Jon shook his head. He had no idea what to do with this new information.

 

“Yeah I know, right? Well if it makes you feel any better, Sansa didn’t tell me either. I heard it from Gilly.”

 

It didn’t make him feel better. Jon had to admit that was a bit hurt by the news. He was happy for his friend. Truly he was. He just didn’t understand why she hadn’t told him herself. Maybe they weren’t as close as he thought they were.

 

Jon and Sam gathered their trash and made for the exit. Lost in thought, Jon tripped over his own two feet and bumped right into a pretty girl with honey blonde hair. Practically knocking her over, his hands held onto her arms to steady them. His face was directly in her cleavage. Soaking in the view for a second or two, Jon righted himself.

 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry Val,” he apologized, his face bright red. She just laughed it off and winked at him before moving off in the other direction. Jon could only stare open-mouthed after her, admiring her nice backside.

 

_Shit, maybe I do need a girlfriend after all._

 

*******

 

Sansa had never been so busy in her life. Junior year was really piling it all on her. Not that she didn’t love it of course. There wasn’t an AP class she wasn’t taking. Her record was looking better and better. If she could keep this up, there was absolutely no way she wouldn’t be valedictorian next year. When she wasn’t doing homework, more often than not, she was with Joffrey.

 

It had been quite the ordeal when she’d told her family about him. Robb had not been happy that they were dating, but she just figured he was being his usual overprotective self. Arya hadn’t necessarily cared too much, mostly just asked if Jon would still be coming over. Her mother and father had been less than thrilled, especially since he was older. But they hadn’t forbid it, so Sansa officially had a boyfriend.

 

She had been so happy that someone liked her in that way. Joffrey had been a perfect gentleman at first and she had liked him for the most part. It was fun going on dates and being with someone. But there were times when she didn’t really like him too well.

 

Joffrey could be a bit temperamental at times, often getting mad at her for various reasons. For example, maybe she didn’t wear the kind of clothes he wanted her to. Just kind of silly things. Sansa felt bad about it, but she rationalized that having someone was better than having no one.

 

Joffrey monopolized her time and as a result she’d been spending less and less time with her friends. That made her a bit sad, but she saw no reason why they all couldn’t hang out together. He’d already met Jeyne, Sam, and Gilly, but Joffrey had yet to meet Jon. Tonight Sansa was going to change that. She was inviting everyone over to her house for tacos and games. It was literally the perfect way to bring people together. Jon and Joffrey could meet and they could all be friends.

 

She didn’t want to think about how Joffrey had been rude to her before everyone had shown up. He’d wanted to know why he had to spend the evening with a bunch of high school kids. He didn’t take kindly to being reminded that Sansa was, in fact, a high school kid. She’d had to remind him that these were her friends and she wanted him to get along with them the way she was starting to get along with his friends. All except Meryn though, he was a jerk.

 

The group had arrived one by one, greeted at the door by her mom. Once Jon arrived, Sansa made the formal introduction.

 

“Joffrey, this is my good friend, Jon,” She said with a smile.

 

Jon offered his hand to him. “Nice to meet you.”

 

Joffrey accepted it. “You as well, I’ve heard a lot about you.”

 

“Oh, really?”

 

“Oh yeah. Sansa never shuts up. Always going on and on. Bit annoying actually,” her boyfriend finished with a mirthless laugh, leaving a moment of silence hanging. Sansa felt herself blush at Joffrey’s words. Jon’s eyes looked in her direction, but if he had noticed her sudden flush, he didn’t acknowledge it.

 

“Well I probably annoy everyone when I talk about her too, so no worries there,” Jon laughed, diffusing the tension in the air. Sansa breathed a sigh of relief. _This can work. We can make this work._

 

Overall, the night went pretty smoothly. Joffrey fit in to the group rather well, she thought. And other than Joffrey getting a bit upset at losing Trivial Pursuit to Jon, everything was nice and amicable. Sansa looked forward to the possibility of them all spending more time together in the future.

 

_We can do this. We can make this work. I know we can._

 

*******

 

By late October, Jon found himself having severe Sansa withdrawals. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d spent a proper amount of time with his friend. Maybe once or twice in the past couple months. He didn’t necessarily want to blame Joffrey, but it _was_ his fault. There was no real other explanation for it.

 

And it wasn’t that Jon disliked Joffrey. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He thought he was kind of cool. A college guy hanging out with a bunch of high school kids? What could possibly be cooler? So yeah, even if he was upset about less Sansa time, at least she seemed to be having a good time with her boyfriend. Jon just wished there was more of her to go around. Her friendship had latched itself on to his heart and he didn’t like the lonely feeling he was left without her.

 

As if the universe had heard his thoughts, his phone rang. Her number popped up on the screen and he answered quickly.

 

“Hey Jon, what’s up?” He smiled at her familiar greeting. She always said the same thing every time she called him.

 

“Nothing. Kinda bored actually. What’s up with you?”

 

“Well, I was thinking about going to a haunted house tonight. I mean, it _is_ almost Halloween and I do want to be festive.”

 

“Now you’re talking! So who all’s going?”

 

“Jeyne, Sam, and Gilly. DUH! What are you new here?” Sansa teased.

 

Jon’s ears perked up at the missing name. “What, no Joffrey?”

 

“No, but we might see him! He’s working there tonight. He said he really enjoys scaring people. Go figure.”

 

Jon decided that was better than nothing. “I think I might be up for that. What time are you planning on going?” He asked, glancing at the clock.

 

“Riiiiiiiiight about now. We’re actually sitting in your driveway waiting for you.”

 

“What!?” Jon went over to the window and looked out. Sure enough Sansa’s car was in the driveway. “Ok damn. Give me five minutes.”

 

Jon got ready in record time and raced out to her car. Climbing in the back seat next to Sam and Gilly, they all drove off to the haunted attraction. It wasn’t actually a house, more like a large open piece of forested land. Instead of guests walking through the attraction, they rode through in carts led by a driver. Kind of like a haunted hay ride, but there was no hay at this establishment.

 

The line for the ride was already long by the time the group got arrived. After waiting over half an hour in line, they finally loaded into their cart. Sam and Gilly took the front, while Jeyne, Jon, and Sansa sat squished in the back. Of course, Jon didn’t necessarily mind being in between two girls who would no doubt cling to him for protection. In fact, he revelled in it.

 

The ride was slow going through the dark forest trails. They wound their way through various gruesome scenes with all manner of famous and not so famous monsters and ghouls popping out at them. Jon smiled as Sansa clung to him with every scare, practically jumping into his lap when Leatherface ran up to her side revving his chainsaw at her. Jeyne was a bit less jumpy, but certainly kept her body close. Throughout the ride Jon had noticed that Sam and Gilly were looking _very_ cozy together all alone in the front. He smiled at the thought of his friends potentially getting together.

 

Eventually the cart made it to the end of the trail and the group disembarked. To reach the end of the attraction, they were forced to walk through a short winding path filled with actors ready to jump out and scare them. One in particular caught Jon’s eye. After attempting to scare them, Samara from _The Ring_ decided to follow them creepily for the rest of their journey. Sansa was looking really freaked out by the whole thing. With Samare right behind him, Jon saw an opportunity to lighten the mood and get the group laughing.

 

Turning toward the actor he asked loudly, “Excuse me, Samara? Are you seeing anyone?”

 

She just kept following them, moving about all creepily.

 

“The only reason I ask is because I think you’re very cute and I’d like to take you out on a date.”

 

Still nothing from her. Although he could hear a few laughs from his friends still on the lookout for more ghouls.

 

“It’s ok, babe. Take some time. I’ll be here for the next 5 minutes or so. I can even give you my number if you want. Think about it,” he finished as they made it to the end of the path, finally leading them back out to the parking lot.

 

“Jon, you are such a dork,” Gilly said once they were free.

 

“What? Didn’t you think she was cute?” he asked with a grin on his face. “Think she’ll call me?”

 

Before anyone could respond, they heard someone calling Sansa’s name. Turning around, the group saw Joffrey jogging towards them. He was dressed in a very royal looking costume, but his face was covered in purple-tinged makeup with blood coming out of his nose and mouth.

 

“Hey babe,” he said, giving Sansa a hug. “Did you guys have fun?”

 

They all replied positively, recounting a few tales from the ride as well as the story of Jon asking out the girl from _The Ring_.

 

Joffrey laughed, “Well maybe I can get her number for you. So what are you all up to now?”

 

“I think we’re gonna go back to my place, eat some pizza, and watch a couple scary movies. Do you think you’ll be able to join us?” Sansa asked Joffrey with a bit of hope in her voice, grabbing his hand and lacing her fingers through his.

 

Jon turned his head from the sight. For some reason he felt uncomfortable seeing such an intimate gesture between the two. It left a bad taste in his mouth.

 

“Sorry, love. It’s still pretty early here. My break is about over and I’ve got to get back. The children won’t scare themselves. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

 

The two exchanged a quick hug and Joffrey jogged back to an employee-only zone. Everyone then piled back into the car to make their way to the Stark house.

 

Later, as they chowed down on pizza and all manner of gruesome character deaths on screen, Jon couldn’t help but smile everytime Sansa would cling to him during all the scary parts.

 

A very happy Halloween indeed.

 

*******

 

Guilt ate away at Sansa as she drove to Sam’s house for his 17th birthday party. The baby of the group, Sam had finally joined the rest of them in age. She was excited to have a night without Joffrey. She knew she had been neglecting her friends and she blamed it on herself. Who knew that juggling friends, family, school, a part-time job, and a boyfriend could be so hard? She was determined to change that though. Especially with Jon.

 

Being in basically all the same classes, Sansa saw Sam, Jeyne, and Gilly all throughout the day. They studied and often did their homework together. But Jon wasn’t in those classes with them. Lunch was the only time during the day they ever saw each other and she sorely missed him and his company.

 

Since she had been going out with Joffrey, she had tried not to think about Jon in a romantic sense. It had worked for a while, but it hadn’t lasted long. She tried to reason with herself that it wasn’t fair to do that to Joffrey. So he wasn’t a perfect boyfriend, but who is? Maybe he forgot about the little things. And maybe he could get a bit cranky sometimes. But he was a good guy and all her friends loved him. And she did too... At least that’s what she told herself.

 

The truth though, was that she had secretly considering the possibility of breaking up with Joffrey for quite a while now. She was growing tired of him. The novelty of their new relationship had long worn off and the more time they spent together the less she really liked him. She didn’t want to admit it, but she thought her brother had probably been justified in his stance against Joffrey.

 

But Sansa Stark was not a quitter. She did not jump ship when the going got rough. No matter how much she wanted to. And she _desperately_ wanted to. As the days came and went it sounded more and more appealing. She could just cut and run. It would be so easy. But what would she do after? She liked the idea of having a boyfriend. She didn’t want to be alone. She rationalized that Joffrey wanted her and that made her feel good. Although she knew in her heart that it was a lie.

 

She was sick of him taking up all her time. She needed some space. He often went through stretches of first being too clingy and then horribly distant. It messed with Sansa’s head and heart. She was tired of the game, but she just wasn’t sure what to do about it.

 

Her drive finally reaching its destination, she wiped her head of all things Joffrey and parked the car. The Tarly’s home sat on a nice piece of land with rolling green hills and a large pond in the back. Their house was small and cozy with a nice live-in feel to it. When having one of their numerous study sessions, she and her friends had often found themselves in their socks sliding around the hardwood floors.

 

“Sansa! So happy you could make it! Come on in, dear,” Sam’s mother greeted her at the door. She was always so nice.

 

“Thanks, Mrs. Tarly!”

 

Sansa followed the sound of laughter and found everyone in the kitchen. Spotting Jon’s inky curls from behind, she sidled right up next to him and bumped him with her shoulder just as he was about to take a drink of his soda.

 

Steadying the can, he whipped his head around. His furrowed brow melted almost at once into a bright smile. “Hey Sansa! What’s up?”

 

“I don’t know, Just arrived. Brought some movies for us to potentially watch. What’s going on here?” She asked, eyes scanning the room.

 

“Not much, just waiting for the fun to start. I never realized it before but, Sam’s parent’s are kind of buzzkills, aren’t they?”

 

“Yeah. Especially his dad. I actually almost can’t believe they let Sam have a party here at all. I mean, fun? Does Randyll Tarly even know what that word means?”

 

Jon chuckled, his eyes and nose crinkling. Sansa averted her gaze, trying hard to not think about just how cute he looked with that smile.

 

“I know what you mean. But I can’t really blame the man. Parties aren’t really my thing.”

 

“What are you talking about? Including this one, I’ve personally seen you attend at least five parties.”

 

“Yeah but those parties were for someone else. They weren’t mine. I’ve never had a birthday party,” he said into his soda can, taking a long pull.

 

“WHAT?” Sansa exclaimed almost like she’d been personally offended by the statement. “You’ve never had a birthday party? How is that possible? You poor thing!” The wheels were already turning in her head.

 

“Nah, don’t worry about it. I just said they aren’t my thing. To be honest, I’ve never wanted one. I don’t really like the idea of being the center of attention like that. Nope. I’ve been completely happy never having a party thank you very much.”

 

By that point, Sansa had long stopped paying attention to what he was saying. _Jon has never had a birthday party? Ok I have to remedy that. His birthday is this summer. That gives me plenty of time to plan. AHHH THIS IS GONNA BE SO EXCITING!!! Best surprise party ever!_

 

The party lasted into the night before coming to a close. The most memorable portion of the evening was when Sam’s parents had allowed them all to watch one of Sansa’s movies in the living room. It was rated R and after much interrogation, Sansa swore that there was no nudity or violence of any sort. They made it about halfway through before Sam’s mom finally caught on to all the cursing on the screen. She forced them to turn it off.

 

Jon and Sansa were the last two to leave, wishing Sam a happy birthday on their way out the door. As they walked out towards their respective cars, they laughed over the events of the party.

 

“Oh man, did you see Sam and Gilly eating cake together? Thick as thieves those two are.”

 

“Duh, Jonathan. They are totally crushing on each other. Like, they just need to make out already so we can stop watching this bizarre mating display.”

 

“I know right? It’s getting kind of old. Who knows, maybe they’ll finally figure it out one of these days.”

 

They stopped in front of her car and looked at each other for a moment. Sansa couldn’t help but admire the way the moon shone bright in his eyes. Jon broke the silence.

 

“Great call on those movies, Sansa. Poor Sam, though. He’ll never get any culture while he’s in this house.”

 

“Don’t worry, I slipped him all the movies. That way he can secretly watch them sometime.”

 

“A true friend you are, Stark.”

 

“You better believe it, Snow.”

 

Once again, a heavy silence fell over them as they stared at each other. Her arms itched to grab him and hug him. Instead, she just clenched her fist around her keys.

 

“Well it’s late, guess I should be going,” she broke the silence, unlocking her car.

 

“Yeah. Me too. Here, let me get that for you,” Jon said opening the car door for her. Sansa blushed as she slipped inside and buckled her seatbelt.

 

“Umm, bye Jon.”

 

“Bye Sansa,” he rasped.

 

He closed her door with a small smile and walked off to his dad’s car with his head down and his hands in his pockets.

 

She felt an ache in her chest at the sight of him. Sansa sighed and started up the car, driving into the night.   _I can spend time with him. It doesn’t have to be weird. I can be his friend. It doesn’t have to be weird. I will throw him the best damn birthday party ever. It doesn’t have to be weird._

 

*******

 

By spring, Jon and the group were back to spending more time together like the had all last year. The only difference was that Joffrey was with them much of the time. That was the case this particular Friday night at the Stark house. Jon didn’t mind too much. He was just happy to be spending time with them all.

 

For him, the past fall and winter had been an exercise in how to cope with loneliness. Sure, Jon hung out with Tormund and the guys on occasion. But for the most part they all had girlfriends. Jon did not, so that left him high and dry.

 

He had decided to use the alone time to his advantage, pouring himself deeper into two things he absolutely loved: music and film. Using what little money he had, he had purchased as many CDs and DVDs as he could afford. He’d become obsessed with The Beach Boys’ _Pet Sounds_ in particular. The album was on constant rotation on his stereo. He’d found a new appreciation for Stanley Kubrick films as well as a great love for _The Office._

 

These things were of great comfort to him as he slipped into the winter blues. But the snow had finally melted, the sun was shining, and things were finally looking up. He was back with his friends and that was all that mattered. He could even put up with Joffrey being there.

 

If he was being perfectly honest, the more Jon saw of him, the more he disliked him. How he had once thought the guy was cool, he’ll never understand. He’d seemed to be such a nice guy, but every so often Jon would see cracks in that facade. He wasn’t really the cool, suave guy everyone thought he was. But if Sansa was happy, then Jon was happy for her.

 

That night Cat and Ned were out with friends while the usual group (along with Joffrey and Arya) hung out by themselves. They were playing a board game, which was not unusual for them to do. But as the game got more intense, Jon became uneasy. Looking around the room, he found Jeyne, Gilly, Sam, and even Sansa with the same expression mirrored on their faces.

 

Joffrey and Arya had been at each other’s throats for most of the game. Arya liked to push buttons. That was just who she was. Joffrey clearly did not appreciate that fact. The two went at it to the bitter end until it finally erupted.

 

“HA! I beat you!” Arya exclaimed, sticking her tongue out at him. “I win! You’re a loser! Why don't you go cry about it Joffrey?”

 

“Arya!” Sansa tried to interject to no avail. Ayra kept gloating as Joffrey’s face got more red and his fists clenched. It was all happening like a horrible train wreck. Jon could do nothing but sit stock still and watch.

 

“SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU ANNOYING LITTLE BITCH!” Joffrey screamed at her, flipping over the board and storming away from the table.

 

“Joffrey, wait…” Sansa jumped up and chased after him looking upset. Arya burst into tears and fled upstairs, leaving Jon, Jeyne, Sam, and Gilly alone to pick up the pieces of the shattered evening.

 

Jon was shocked. He’d never seen Joffrey ever do anything like that before. He had half a mind to take off after Sansa just to make sure she was going to be ok. Instead, he decided that Arya might be in more need of assistance.

 

With a quick word, he left the group and went upstairs to her room. He could hear her soft cries through her door. Slowly, he reached up and knocked three times.

 

“Go away!” She called through the door.

 

“Arya, it’s Jon. Can I- Can I come in?” He waited for a moment, straining his ears in an attempt to hear any form of communication.

 

“Ok,” came her wet reply.

 

Jon opened her door and saw her sitting on the edge of her bed crying. Not sure exactly what to do, he sat next to her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shirt. Jon put his arm around her shoulders. After a while, her muffled voice broke through the tears.

 

“Umm, what was that?”

 

“I said I hate Joffrey.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“He’s the worst. And I hate Sansa too.”

 

“No you don’t. She’s your sister.”

 

“Ok fine, maybe I don’t hate her. But I hate the way she is with him. She’s different. Haven’t you noticed?”

 

Jon had noticed. When Sansa was around Joffrey she did act different. He wasn’t quite sure how to describe it, but he certainly couldn’t deny it.

 

“Yeah. I have.”

 

“I want them to break up. I hate them together. They’re so mean to me.”

 

“What?”

 

“Joffrey, he’s so mean to me all the time. And Sansa too. She just goes along with him. Always takes his side. It’s not fair, she’s supposed to be my sister!”

 

“So this isn’t the first time this has happened?”

 

“No. He’s done this kind of thing before. I don’t like him. I don’t want him here.”

 

Jon didn’t know what to say. He’d had no idea about any of this.

 

“Can you talk to her, Jon? She’ll listen to you.”

 

He paused, collecting his thoughts.

 

“I don’t know... maybe? But I think you should try to talk to her. You’re her sister. She should hear it from you. To tell you the truth, we don’t really talk about this kind of stuff, but I’ll see what I can do.”

 

Arya nodded and sniffed while swiping at her cheeks. “Thanks Jon. You’re the best. I wish Sansa was going out with you instead.”

 

Jon laughed and got up from her bed. “You sure you’re gonna be ok?”

 

“Yeah. Thanks again.”

 

“It’ll be ok. I’ll go talk to Sansa.”

 

They exchanged goodbyes and Jon left the room and went back downstairs. He found Sansa cleaning up alone.

 

“Hey. Where’s everyone else?”

 

“Joffrey left. And then Jeyne took Sam and Gilly home. How’s Arya? Is she ok? Thank you so much for checking on her, by the way.”

 

“Yeah, no problem. She’s gonna be fine.” Jon paused as he thought about what he was going to say next. “Sansa, can I talk to you for a second?”

 

“Sure.” Jon tried not to notice her red-rimmed eyes behind her misleading smile.

 

“So obviously, Arya’s pretty upset about this. She wanted me to talk to you about everything, but I’m just not really sure what to say.”

 

“Yeah. I know her and Joffrey don’t really get along.”

 

Jon nodded. “Maybe just go talk to her. Hear her out. I think she really just wants her sister right now.”

 

“Ok. Thanks Jon. For everything. I’m so sorry about all this. What a waste of a perfectly good Friday night.” Jon studied her for a moment. She was sadder than he’d ever seen her look.

 

“Are you gonna be ok, Sansa? I can stay for a bit if you need me to. I don’t want to leave you alone...”

 

For a second, Jon thought she was going to tackle him in a hug and never let go.

 

“No no. I’m fine. You should go. I’ll, umm, I’ll go talk to Arya. Have a good weekend, Jon.”

 

“Yeah, you too Sansa. Take care,” he sighed.

 

Jon turned and walked out of the house. As he got in his dad’s car and drove off he couldn’t stop his mind.

 

_That look she gave me. What was that? Should I have hugged her? She seemed so sad. What the fuck Joffrey? That shit is not ok. And poor Arya. If he’s really done this shit before… God, what did she say to me? “I wish Sansa was going out with you instead.”_

 

His heart clenched, remembering Ayra’s wish. Jon couldn't deny that it felt good to hear, but he just couldn't understand why.

 

*******

 

It was the night of the junior prom. By all rights, Sansa should be excited to go. She should be excited to wear her fancy dress and have fun with her friends. She should be excited to have a date to dance the night away with. She should be excited about everything about this night, unfortunately she was anything but.

 

Joffrey was spoiling everything. Well, maybe not everything. For once, he was actually trying to impress. He’d sent her a picture of himself all dressed up. He looked nice in his suit and he was even able to take his father’s expensive sports car for them to drive.

 

Everything about this felt wrong. She didn’t want to go with Joffrey. She didn’t even want to be with Joffrey. She wanted to be done with him. She felt like a fool. Like a stupid little girl with stupid dreams. She had wanted love so bad. Bad enough that she had jumped at the chance to go on a date with Joffrey. If she could go back in time, Sansa would reject his offer so fucking fast.

 

Joffrey was as far from any fairytale prince as he could possibly get. She should have trusted Robb, but she had just wanted that connection with someone. It just so happened she chose the absolute worst person. Now, Sansa had been with Joffrey for about 10 months. And that was 8 months too long in her opinion. Once he started showing his true colors, she should have ended it on the spot. But she hadn’t. And now every subsequent offense he hurls her way she has no one to blame but herself.

 

At first, she’d just thought Joffrey was a nice guy who was a bit down on his luck. So she had been able to forgive him for being a bit cranky. But now Sansa knew the truth. Joffrey was a sad, angry little man who was incredibly frustrated by his own life and lack of ambition. He had flunked out of King’s Landing University, having no backup plan. He was incredibly frustrated with his life and more often than not, he seemed to channel his frustrations at Sansa.

 

And that pretty much boiled down to getting mad at just about every little thing. Any perceived slight might make him fly off the handle. Ways Sansa has seen Joffrey deal with this anger include: rage driving, punching holes into walls, yelling and cursing at her, and just all around making her feel like shit.

 

And that is exactly how she felt as she finished up her final touches before prom. Sansa wanted so badly to break up with him, but she was so worried he might do something. Just what that something might be, she did not want to think about. He had never explicitly said anything, but the threat was there and it tore her up. She was too afraid to talk to him or anyone else about her situation. So, not knowing what else to do, she slipped on her mask of courtesy and decided to maintain the status quo until the day something changed.

 

Sansa comforted herself with the knowledge that Joffrey would most likely be on his best behavior tonight and that at least she’d have her friends there with her. Sam had finally gathered the courage to ask Gilly. Only took him 84 years, but she was so happy for her friends. And Jeyne had been asked out by one of Jon’s friends, Edd Tollett.

 

Unfortunately, Jon would not be attending prom. As far as Sansa knew, he’d not even asked anyone. She almost thought it was better this way. At least she wouldn’t have to potentially be jealous of him and his date. Despite not wanting to think about Jon, her mind betrayed her.

 

_Jon would probably be an excellent date. He’d look so handsome in his suit. And he would hold open doors and hold my hand. He would dance with me all night and we’d laugh and laugh. And then at the end of the night he would walk me to my door and kiss me. I bet his lips would feel so soft against mine-_

 

***DING DONG***

 

The ringing doorbell signaling Joffrey’s arrival shook Sansa out of her thoughts. Looking in the mirror one last time, she practiced her smile. Satisfied it would be believable for pictures, she took a deep breath and walked out of her room to meet her date.

 

_If only Jon was my date instead..._

 

_..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> Much like sophomore year, M and I had no classes together for our junior year. But true to the story we did have lunch together. That fall we saw less and less of each other as she spent more and more time with her new boyfriend. It sucked.
> 
> As for the big reveal to Jon, I just pieced that together for the story. I don't actually remember the circumstances surrounding my discovery of M’s boyfriend, but I'm almost positive I did not hear it from her. And my thoughts were very much what Jon is feeling here. I thought it was really weird, but I was happy for her.
> 
> The whole Tormund crushing on Ms. Tarth thing is totally fictionalized for the story. I just threw that in there for our very own General Crow. ;) Oh and that interaction with Val in the hallway? Yeah totally made that up as well.
> 
> The trip to the haunted attraction was real. I believe they still run it every year. It's on this big piece of land out in the country so it's a bit spooky, but overall kind of lame. Not the best scares for your buck. M’s boyfriend actually worked there, but I believe he was a driver for the carts and not an actor. Also, Jon's interaction with the girl from The Ring is 100% something I did. Yeah I am that kind of asshole. As a general rule I don't really care for haunted houses, but at some point toward the end I become immune to the scares and start getting sassy with the actors. True to character, she never spoke a word. Oh yeah and M is a total scaredy-cat when it comes to these things. She definitely used me as a shield.
> 
> Sam's birthday party was real. The real Mr. and Mrs. Tarly are two of the loveliest people I've ever met. Yes the movie thing was real and yeah they were kind of buzzkills about it, right? A bit over protective for their 17 year old son, but whatever. M and I did not have a tense moment out by the cars that night. Sorry to disappoint you all.
> 
> Jon's claim of never having a birthday party is ripped directly from my life. I would go to them, but I never wanted one as a kid for the exact same reasons as Jon. Sansa will be taking it upon herself to remedy the situation just as M did. So that will be something to look forward to soon! :)
> 
> Ok, where do I begin on Joffrey? Let's call his real life counterpart T. When I first met T I liked him. He was older and I thought he was cool. I can honestly say that there were times that I had fun with him. At the time, he seemed like a good guy to me. Despite what some of you might have been hoping for, I was NOT jealous at all. If anything I was just sad that I wasn't spending as much time with M as I wanted.
> 
> Throughout the chapter we see Sansa questioning her relationship with him and that is straight from M. She told me she was only happy in that relationship for roughly the first two months. After that it was all downhill. All of Joffrey's anger issues and the various examples used in the story are all sadly real things that she actually experienced with T. 
> 
> I'm not sure when I first decided I didn't like the guy, but I definitely witnessed him being an asshole more than once. I vividly remember T yelling at M’s little sister on one occasion. She was upset and I remember comforting her in some capacity. It probably wasn't anything like I depicted it here, so this is mostly a fabrication.
> 
> Over time, it became more and more obvious that T was not a good guy. And I began to wonder why M stayed with him. As she explained to me, it was mostly due to fear. She was afraid of what he might do. She'd witnessed his anger countless times. She was so worried that the act of breaking up with him might make him do something rash either to her or himself. Needless to say, T had a lot of problems. Thankfully he never physically assaulted her in any way during the duration of their relationship. Although she still carries some of the emotional abuse she suffered from him to this day.
> 
> Ok let's end on a happier note, shall we? The real life Sam and Gilly did in fact skirt around each other before getting together. However they did not last very long. :/
> 
> This is your friendly reminder that everything is ok now. M and I are happily married and have a beautiful 23 month old daughter. Life is good. ❤️
> 
> I'm not going to say anything about the next chapter other than it will be all from Jon's POV. Should be out soon! Thanks for reading! :)


	6. The Way I Feel Inside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon reflects and comes to a realization.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> QUICK REALITY CHECK:
> 
> After the last chapter, I know many of you were dying to know what was happening with the junior prom. Some of you had very high hopes that Jon would be the one at the door and that Joffrey would be history. So allow me to disappoint you. :P
> 
> No, I did not go to prom that year. I did not have a date, nor did I want to have a date. And I was definitely not going alone. Not to mention, I really didn't want to dance. While I had noticed that T was kind of a dick, there was absolutely no way for me to know all the bad things that he was doing to M. If you remember correctly she was bottling all that up and not telling anyone anything at all. So as I am keeping this story true to my life, it would have made zero sense for Jon to swoop in to be Sansa's date with no other knowledge. We know nothing, people. Sorry to burst all your bubbles!
> 
> However, you can rest assured knowing that prom went relatively well. A decent time was had by all. Joffrey/T did not attempt to try anything inappropriate with Sansa/M. So it's all good people. Well it's not _all _good, but you know what I mean.__
> 
> __So anyway, just thought I'd clear that up now since we won't actually be seeing the junior prom in this story proper. Jon will mention it a bit in this chapter, but that's it. Ok, now that we have that taken care of... Enjoy a moment you've all been waiting for! It's short, but I think you'll appreciate it. ;)_ _

 

It was late June. Usually Jon liked to stay up late and have fun during those hours when the world was asleep. But not this summer. For some reason, Jon has found himself becoming more reflective and introspective. And on this night in particular, Jon found himself in bed relatively early just thinking. It felt wrong, like he should be doing something else, but he didn’t know what else to do. He was tired and he wanted to go to sleep, but his mind was going a mile a minute and wouldn't allow it.

 

This wasn’t the first time he’d had trouble sleeping like this. He’d had nights few and far between where he had just stayed awake, listened to music, and watched the sunrise while puzzling out his thoughts. But those nights had been different. They weren’t like what he was experiencing now. No, on this night Jon’s thoughts all had a common thread. Something that, if he was being honest with himself, he had been thinking about a lot recently.

 

Sansa.

 

Jon wasn’t exactly sure when she had first started invading his thoughts more and more, but now it was almost constant. He had never really paid much attention to it before. They were best friends after all. It was natural to think about your friend all the time, right? But somewhere along the line those thoughts turned into feelings that Jon did not fully understand.

 

They made him feel funny. Happy and sad and back again on a never ending loop. He was his happiest when he was around her. And yet that often came with sadness. It was like he wasn’t getting enough from her. He always wanted more time with her. He often found his precious time slipping away when he was with her. And it was always worse when Joffrey was there. 

 

Jon blanched as his thoughts turned to Joffrey.  _ What does Sansa see in that guy? Sure, he’s older, but that’s like basically nothing. She could do so much better.  _

 

The Monday after prom, Jon had sat at the lunch table and listened to everyone go on and on about how much fun they’d had. He’d put a smile on his face and feigned interest. He really hadn’t cared. Jon, ever the wallflower, had never been one for dances. All that frivolity and merriment had never appealed to him. Although he supposed the right date would make things more fun. In Jon’s mind, Sansa was the only person to fit the bill.

 

_ I bet Sansa would be a good date. We already have so much fun together. I bet if it was us that had gone we would have made fun of all the other kids and took goofy pictures and drank punch and all that other crap you're supposed to do at these things. I would have even danced with her. I know she wouldn’t judge me for my awful dance moves. It would have been nice. _

 

And that was the very reason why Jon had accepted her proposal that same Monday at lunch. Sansa knew that no matter what, Joffrey would be unable to attend prom with her next year as he would would have reached the age limit. She’d asked Jon point blank if he would be her date for senior prom, on the condition that he didn’t have anyone else he wanted to take of course. Seeing no reason not to say yes, he had agreed. Sansa had been so excited, squealing about how they would have so much fun and that they should already start planning their outfits. Jon had just smiled and gone along with it. _Anything to make her happy._

 

Jon’s thoughts drifted back to her happy self as he’d seen her earlier that day. The whole Stark family had been home. Jon loved being there when everyone was present. He loved them all. They were just such a happy family. Jon probably wouldn't admit it, but Cat was basically a second mother to him. Ned had been a bit intimidating at first, but Jon had gotten along with him so well that there was no concern there anymore. Robb was about as cool as they came. Super funny and nice. One of those “give you the shirt off his back” kind of guys. Then there was Arya. While she could be a bit annoying at times, that was just who she was. Jon felt something of a kinship with her, almost like she was his little sister.

 

Sansa though… She was on another planet. So kind, warm, and funny. The smartest, most ambitious person he’d ever met. There was nothing she couldn’t do if she set her mind to it. Jon was constantly amazed by her in everything she would do. Even the little things. And her seemingly unwavering positivity was always a welcome salve for his own more melancholy disposition.

 

When Jon had found her up in her room that afternoon, Sansa had been busy vacuuming. Not wanting to scare her, he’d waited for her to finish. She was almost dancing around the room with a big smile on her face, mouthing the words to some song he couldn't hear. Jon had been rooted to the floor, unable to tear his eyes away. There was just something about her in that moment. Something about her that made her seem absolutely radiant. It had almost been like he was seeing her in a new light. And when she had looked up and their eyes met and she jumped in surprise and blushed, giving him a sheepish smile, Jon had thought his heart was going to explode. 

 

_ God, she looked so good today. Has she always looked that good? Those shorts… Have her legs always been that long? And her skin looked so damn smooth. Why do I want to touch it so bad? And how have I never noticed how shiny her hair is? It looked great. SHE looked great. God, what is wrong with me? This is so fucking weird. _

 

Jon didn’t understand what was happening. He had never felt this way before about anyone else. Sure, he’d thought about girls before, (he was a teenage boy after all) but never like this. Never like how he wanted to just look at her and touch her and have fun with her and just  _ be  _ with her. And not as a friend, no, as something more. This was a new feeling that Jon had never experienced. It was almost like… Well, it was almost like...

 

“Oh my god,” Jon said aloud to the empty room. “I’m in love with her.”

 

_ Holy shit I am in love with Sansa. Fuck. No. That can’t be right. She’s my best friend. I- She’s my best friend. I can’t be in love with her. That’s ridiculous. I’m not- That’s- Shit. I am. I am fucking in love with Sansa Stark. What. The. Fuck. How did this fucking happen? Goddammit. _

 

Jon’s mind went into overdrive. Suddenly it was all clear. The looks, the laughs, the touches. It all made sense. All that time spent bonding over music and movies and games. All those times driving around in her car doing nothing. Every time she had gone out of her way to do something for him. It had all been leading up to this very moment and somehow he had never seen it coming.

 

A breathless laugh escaped Jon as a warm feeling of relief washed over him. Finally, he had a name to the all these things happening inside of him.  _ Love. _ He smiled, turning the phrase over in his head half a hundred times.  _ I’m in love with Sansa Stark.  _ It felt good. It felt right, almost like it was meant to be. For a split-second he felt like he could just float off the ground right into space… But then suddenly he came crashing back down to earth, plunging himself into ice cold reality.

 

_ Wait. Fuck. Sansa is not single. Sansa has a boyfriend. Sansa is going out with Joffrey motherfucking Baratheon. Sansa doesn’t want me like that. Fuck. What am I going to do? After all this? Now I know and there’s nothing I can do about it. Fuck me, right? This is what I get for taking too long. Goddammit I could’ve had her. She was right there. My best friend…  _

 

Jon sighed in frustration and slammed his head back against the pillow repeatedly. As if it wasn’t bad enough that he had finally figured out he was in love with Sansa, the realization that she was wholly unavailable made things a billion times worse. He had no idea how he was going to handle this situation. How does one navigate being in love with their best friend who is in a relationship with someone else?

 

As Jon pondered the answer, he turned his head toward the clock on his nightstand. The LED display read 10:36 PM.  _Perfect_ __._ Just what I wanted. I still have all fucking night to think about this. Wonderful. God, what am I gonna do? I have to tell her, right? No. I can't do that. She's with him. She's happy. Why would she want to be with me? I am nothing and she is everything. Fuck my life. _

 

Jon laid awake for hours that night. It was near dawn by the time he finally fell into a fitful sleep, no closer to any kind of answer. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> This is it folks. We finally made it. This chapter is without a doubt the most personal one yet for me. This one is all 100% true. Barring name changes, this is all directly ripped from my life. 10:36 PM June 24, 2007. A time and date I will never forget. That is the exact moment I realized I was in love with M. I was almost 18 years old and had no idea what the fuck I was doing.
> 
> I remember not being able to sleep that night so I was just lying in bed staring at the ceiling. I couldn't stop thinking about her. And then all of a sudden it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was in love with her and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. It was such a relief and such a fucking let down at the same time. 
> 
> It was like I finally knew what all these feelings were that had been plaguing me for so long. Because, let's be honest here, this was a long time coming. There were so many moments that, if I had picked up on them earlier, we could have been together a long time ago. But instead they all came through at once, like a flood of text messages after a plane ride.
> 
> The moment Jon describes seeing Sansa vacuuming is totally legit. I just remember seeing M vacuuming one day and for some reason I couldn't look away. Suddenly she was super attractive and watching her clean was totally bewitching and I don't know why. I just know that it struck something deep inside me that helped lead to my epiphany. Not sure what that says about me, but fuck it I don't care.
> 
> By the way, the mention of the senior prom will definitely be a future plot point. So expect to see more talk of that in upcoming chapters.
> 
> Now this chapter marks both the end of Act 1 and the beginning of Act 2 of this story. I've been kind of rushing through the years a bit to get to this moment, but from here on out we will be slowing way down. The real meat of this story takes place during senior year. All that teen angst and mutual pining is now gonna start kicking into fucking overdrive! We're gonna see just how our two lovebirds navigate these feelings for each other and just how exactly they get together. It should be a fun/depressing ride. But mostly fun! :D
> 
> Next chapter will be Jon's birthday. Anybody think Sansa will be throwing him a party? ;)


	7. Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SURPRISE PARTY BITCHES!!!!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at this amazing moodboard my bff Kelly made for me! Love you, babe! ❤️
> 
>  

After months of planning, the big day had finally arrived. Jon’s birthday party was set to be maybe the biggest surprise ever. Sansa was extremely excited as she ran around the house making final preparations before the guests started to arrive. Everything needed to be perfect for Jon. The party theme was a tropical luau. Everyone would be wearing a lei and having a good time. At least that was Sansa’s hope.

 

She had taken care to invite of all his friends. Sam, Gilly, Jeyne, Tormund, Grenn, Edd, Pyp, Val, and a few others would all be attending. As well as Robb, Arya, her mother and father, and both of Jon’s parents. Sansa was very proud of herself for managing to organize this entire thing right under Jon’s nose. As far as she knew, he didn’t suspect a thing. She couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when it was all revealed.

 

One thing Sansa wasn’t so keen on was the fact that Joffrey would be attending the party as well. She had invited him as an act of courtesy, not believing he would actually want to come. She had been floored when he had enthusiastically confirmed his attendance. Sansa swore to herself that if he did anything to jeopardize the good feeling of the party, she would dump him on the spot. Even though she had her doubts that she would actually do that if the moment came, the sentiment was still there.

 

_You should really just break up with him anyway. Then you can kiss the birthday boy..._

 

Sansa shook her head to banish the unwelcome, yet very much wanted thoughts.

 

_Jon doesn’t like me like that and I am not ruining this friendship over a stupid crush. Especially when I am technically still with someone else. No matter how much I don't want to be. I am not that kind of girl._

 

Time ticked by quickly and the guests started arriving. Once she made sure that their cars were all parked clandestinely, Sansa sent a message to Jon asking him to come over to her house to help her with moving a piece of furniture in her room. It was dumb, but she just knew he wouldn’t refuse her. Getting an affirmative response back, Sansa told the party goers to all find their hiding places as Jon would be coming soon.

 

_This is going to be so much fun!_

 

*******

 

Jon was having a lousy birthday. He’d been in a foul mood since his revelation a couple weeks ago. Time had not provided him with any answers on what to do. If anything, he was even more confused.

 

He’d tried to dial it back a bit after that night. Even though his mind had not been able to stop thinking about her, Jon reasoned with himself that maybe it was just a silly crush. He’d had loads of crushes on girls before. Why should this one be any different?

 

_Because none of those crushes have ever made you feel like this before, asshole._

 

Jon couldn’t help but agree with his brain on that one. All of those other crushes had just been these fleeting moments of attraction. He had often admired Val from afar, as well as that one time in the hallway up close. She was nice to him and she was pretty. But she always seemed to be attached to someone new and Jon figured he wouldn’t ever have a chance with her anyway.

 

Jon had even developed a little crush on Jeyne last year. In fact, he had seriously considered asking her out a few times, but thought it might be too weird with the whole group dynamic. He hadn’t wanted to make things more awkward than he already did.

 

And then, most recently, Sansa happened. Truth be told, he had probably been crushing on her longer than he knew. Those weird feelings had been creeping in the back of his mind for months before he was finally able to put a name to them. And now that he recognized it for what it truly was, it was horrible.

 

Jon didn’t want to be just friends. He wanted to be with her. He wanted to be with her in all the ways that truly mattered. But he couldn’t. He was stuck in this awful place that seemingly had no way out. _How do you tell your best friend that you’re in love with her?_

 

It had been about 15 minutes since Jon’s parents had left the house, mentioning something about going to get some paint for the bathroom. At least it left him some time to think. He’d seen Sansa just last week. It had been the first time he’d lain eyes on her since his revelation. She’d looked utterly beautiful that day. So much so, he’d wanted to tell her. His fingers had been itching to reach out and touch her. But he hadn’t done any of that. Instead, he’d kept his hands firmly in his pockets and his mouth shut. He foresaw that happening a lot in his future.

 

 Lost in thought, he was startled by an incoming message on his phone.

 

“Probably just mom or dad,” he frowned.

 

Picking it up and flipping it open, he was surprised to see it was from Sansa. She’d messaged him earlier to wish him a happy birthday, but he was not expecting anything more from her. Seeing that she wanted help moving something, Jon’s frown increased.

 

_Really? Come on! Don’t you have a dad to help you do that? Why me? Ugh. I’m trying to not think about you, Sansa. How the hell am I supposed to do that if I have to see you all the goddamn time? I should just say no. It is my birthday after all, she'd understand..._

 

But of course, Jon being Jon, he told her he’d be over to help soon. After sending a quick message to his parents saying he was going over to the Stark’s house for a minute, he grabbed the keys to his new (old) car and took off.

 

Jon's older sister was about to start grad school and had finally gotten a new car for herself. Their father had made the decision that they would hand it down to Jon for his 18th birthday. To which he was EXTREMELY grateful. It was almost ten years old, but in great condition. Jon was just happy to have a set of wheels. As he drove, he came up with a plan.

 

_Ok. Just get in and get out. Say “Hi, what do you need help with?” Do the thing and leave. Easy. Just do not fall for her trap. And by that I mean her everything. Be strong. Don’t let her convince you to stay. No matter what. Ok, well maybe not no matter what... SHIT! Just be cool. It’ll all be fine. Maybe you’ll even get a present out of it. That might be nice. Then you can go back home and sulk in private._

 

As Jon drove through the neighborhood, his eyes noticed quite a few cars lining the street. But his mind was so focused on the task at hand, it did not even register them. Parking the car in the driveway and taking a deep breath, Jon exited the car and walked inside the house.

 

It had been a long time since he had bothered to go to the front and knock or ring the doorbell. He was a regular and always used the side door by the garage. The familiar squeak of the door signalled his arrival. Walking through the dark laundry room and into the hall, Jon thought it was unusual that the house seemed so quiet. Turning into the kitchen he let out a lingering, “Hello?”

 

Both the kitchen and the living room were dark as well. Jon was just about to reach for a light switch when a loud chorus of “SURPRISE!” shocked him into place and the house flooded with light as people came pouring into view, laughing and clapping at his expense.

 

_Motherfuckinggoddammitsonofabitchpieceofshitfuck..._

 

*******

 

In one lifetime there are many moments one might wish to go back in time and change. Seeing the absolute horror on Jon’s face at the reveal of his surprise party was one of those moments for Sansa. She had assumed the shock would be momentary and he would be ecstatic to have such caring friends that wanted to celebrate his day with him. Unfortunately, that was not the case.

 

Jon’s initial surprise had faded away into something that appeared almost like barely contained dread. His face had gone pale and he looked extremely uncomfortable, like he wanted to turn around and run the other way. Instead he was rooted to the spot with a tight-lipped smile that was really more of a grimace. His fists were clenched and his nostrils were flared. This was not the look of someone who was happy.

 

The earlier revelry of the surprise had receded into an uncomfortable moment for everyone. All of the guests stood around awkwardly, unsure of what to do. Sansa scanned the room. It appeared that everyone had immediately picked up on the fact that Jon was upset. Even Joffrey looked somewhat taken aback by his reaction.

 

Sansa wracked her brain, desperately trying to think of a way to diffuse the situation to no avail. Luckily, Tormund was able to beat her to the punch.

 

“This is supposed to be a party, right? Bring on the snacks! I’m starving over here!” he boomed out. And suddenly it was like the entire room relaxed. Everyone began milling about once again. All except Jon. He was still stuck to his spot in the kitchen, reluctantly accepting hugs and pats on the back which he did not reciprocate.

 

Sansa felt like the worst person in the world. She’d been so excited at the idea of throwing a party for her deprived friend, that she had completely ignored that little voice in the back of her head that had told her that Jon probably wouldn’t like it.

 

_I am so stupid. UGH! I should have just listened to him. Now I’ve made him feel like shit on his birthday. I just wanted to do something nice for him! Ok, so lesson learned. Absolutely no more surprise parties for Jon. I will file that away for future reference because I never want to see that look on his face ever again. Way to go me..._

 

Sansa made eye contact with her mother who was doling out paper plates in the kitchen. Her mom gave her one of those faces that just screamed _YIKES_. She returned the look with wide eyes and went to Jon to assess the damage.

 

Edd had been talking at Jon while the latter stood stock still. Being the mopey guy he was, Edd was probably just making things worse. Seeing her walk up though, he took off towards the refreshments leaving Jon and her blissfully alone in the middle of the party. Sansa gave him her best apologetic face while she shifted her weight from foot to foot and wrung her hands nervously.

 

“I’m really sorry, Jon,” she whispered, finding it hard to make eye contact. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I just wanted to show you a good time. You’re my best friend, I-”

 

“No, it’s- It’s fine, Sansa,” he interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. “Thank you... for this. Seriously. This is… it's great. I’m sure it’ll be fun. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

 

The forced smile Jon gave her did almost nothing to reassure Sansa, but he did seem to visibly relax a bit. That would have to be enough for now.

 

“Good,” she said, grabbing a bright orange lei off the counter and placing it over his head. She tried not to notice the way his breath hitched and his ears turned pink. “Because we are going to have a whole lot of fun!”

 

*******

 

Jon had been ready to die right there in the Stark kitchen. He thought hell would open up and swallow him whole. Of all the things he had been expecting to happen to him on this day, he had never imagined this particular scenario. Which was ridiculous, seeing as how it was his birthday. He should have known. Falling for the old “come over and help me” trick, how dumb could he be?

 

Sansa had truly gone all out for the party. The decorations were sublime. He’d never seen her house look so tropical before. He simply could not believe that she had somehow gotten all of his friends and parents together for his birthday. He reasoned that she must have been working on this thing for quite a while. Even though he still wasn’t pleased with the situation, as the party went on, the more fun he had.

 

He loved watching Grenn make a fool of himself dancing around in the grass skirt and coconut bra that were originally meant for him. He hated opening presents while everyone watched him. He loved Sansa’s gift of a mix cd (he already knew that one was going to be on heavy rotation) and a few old records. He hated when everyone had sung to him before he blew out the candles on his cake. He loved watching Robb and Arya battling it out in Wii Sports. But without a doubt, the thing Jon hated the most was seeing Joffrey.

 

Jon took comfort in the fact that not many people seemed to be pleased to see him there either. Joffrey kept to himself mostly, possibly just as uncomfortable to be attending the party as Jon himself. The worst part was how he attempted to stick to Sansa like glue, barely letting her out of his sight. Jon’s eyes couldn’t help but linger on all the little touches they shared. He knew he was torturing himself, but he couldn’t stop. It was his own personal trainwreck that was coming right at him. If Jon was a smart man, he would have actively tried to ignore Sansa instead of making heart eyes at her from across the party. To be fair, he was still learning how to deal with his new feelings on the fly. Thankfully, Joffrey decided to head out rather early.

 

“Don’t come back,” he’d heard Robb mutter under his breath as Sansa walked Joffrey out. Jon tried his best to not think about the high likelihood of her kissing him goodbye. He failed.

 

Once she came back inside, she immediately went to the kitchen to grab some cake. Jon made a calculated beeline towards her. Acting like he was just grabbing a soda from the cooler, he casually bumped into her.

 

“Oops! Sorry, Sansa,” he said, using his best sheepish voice.

 

“Sure you are,” she eyed him suspiciously. “Are you enjoying your party?” She asked hopefully.

 

“Yeah it’s actually turning out a lot better than I thought. I can honestly say I’m having a good time.”

 

A comfortable silence settled between them as they just kind of stared at each other. Sansa was the first one to break it.

 

“So… are you ready for stat come fall?”

 

“Stat?” Jon was genuinely confused.

 

“Duh! AP statistics? Remember? I forced you to sign up with us so we could all have at least one class together for senior year?”

 

Jon groaned as his memory was refreshed. When they had been deciding on next year’s classes, Sansa had begged him to take AP stat with them. She needed that AP credit and she _really_ wanted him to take it with her. Sam, Jeyne, and Gilly would all be there too. Jon had tried to argue that he was no good at math and that he didn’t want to fail a class. Sansa promised that she would do everything in her power to make sure he passed. She had then given him her best puppy dog eyes and even pre-lovesick Jon had been unable to resist her charms.

 

“Ugh. Why did I ever let you talk me into that?”

 

“Because you love me, dummy,” she winked at him.

 

For a second, Jon thought that he was caught. That maybe hell was going to swallow him up. But then she chuckled and took a bite of cake.

 

“Trust me. It’s gonna be so much fun, Jon. We’ll get to see each other everyday. What could be better than that?”

 

Jon couldn't help the wistful grin that broke out on his face. “I honestly have no idea.”

 

*******

 

As the party came to a close, Sansa felt relieved. She had successfully thrown Jon a surprise party and despite the rough start, It had turned out pretty well. If she were more conceited she would have pat herself on the back for her accomplishment. As it stood though, she just settled for the satisfaction of a job well done.

 

She had been more than thrilled to see Joffrey leave early. But as she had walked him out, he had accused her of ignoring him in favor of her guests.

 

"A good girlfriend isn't supposed to do that," he had said. Sansa had wanted to scream at him. Ask him how she could have possibly been ignoring him when he had barely left her alone for the entire duration of his stay. Instead she just bit her tongue and apologized to him like she always did when he was upset. He’d apparently been so pleased with her apology that he decided to “reward” her with a kiss from his wormy chapped lips and too wet tongue. It was more like a punishment that she could hardly bear to endure.

 

Sansa was disgusted with herself at her situation. A feeling that she was sadly starting to grow used to. Everyday her relationship with Joffrey dragged on, the harder it became to end it. She did not want to be stuck in this forever, but the best exit strategy she had come up with so far was to apply to universities far enough away that they would have no choice but to break up. To her it made sense. Long distance things don't usually work out so well and she won't have time to be with him with all her studies. It was a good plan. It would work.

 

She adamantly refused to entertain the very real possibility that Joffrey might attempt to follow her wherever she went. She was going to end this sham of a relationship one way or another. It _would_ be over by the end of senior year. There was no other option. Sansa just hoped she could make it till then without breaking down.

 

At least she had her friends and family. And least she had Jon.

 

*******

 

It being his party, of course Jon was the last to leave. It had turned out to be fun, but he had never felt so happy to be done with anything in his life. Robb had helped him load up all the gifts in his car and Cat had insisted he take home the leftover cake and snacks. Mostly so Ned wouldn't wind up eating them. He had thanked the Starks profusely for hosting. Ned had brushed it off telling him that, "You're practically family at this point, son." Jon had to admit that he liked the sound of that.

 

After everything was loaded up and ready to go Jon was leaning against the car chatting with Sansa. The sun was just starting to set and she looked absolutely gorgeous in the soft light.  _How did I never notice how beautiful she is?_

 

“Hey Jon, what did you wish for when you blew out your candles?” Sansa questioned him.

 

_You._

 

“I uh-” He faltered, trying to think of something. He couldn't possibly be so bold as to tell her what he actually wished for. “I can’t tell you that, Sansa.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“Because if I do it won’t come true.” _And fuck me, I really want it to come true._

 

“Oh yes, of course. What was I thinking?” She rolled her eyes and laughed.

 

Much like earlier during the party, a silence fell over them. Only this time, instead of staring at each other, Sansa moved forward and wrapped her arms tightly around him. He could feel her warm breath on his neck. Feel her body crushed up against his. Not knowing the next time he’d ever get the chance to hold her again, he returned her hug with all he had.

 

“Happy birthday, Jon,” she whispered in his ear, her voice making him shiver against her.

 

In that moment, there was so much he wanted to say. Tell her how much he loved her. Tell her how amazing she smelled. Tell her how much he appreciated everything she had done for him.

 

Instead he just settled for a simple, “Thank you.”

 

Sansa kissed him on the cheek. Jon closed his eyes and basked in the feeling of her soft lips against his skin. It only lasted less than a second, but it was worth a lifetime to him. With one last squeeze they parted and exchanged small smiles. With a wave, Jon climbed into his car and started the drive home. He glanced over at all his new gifts and couldn't help but feel that one very big thing was missing.

 

*******

 

Catelyn Stark had always considered herself an observant woman. One doesn’t raise three children and not learn how to pick up a thing or two. By now she knew just about everything there was to know about her husband and her children. And Sansa was not immune to Cat’s intuition.

 

One thing she knew for certain was that there was no way that Sansa was happy with Joffrey. Now her daughter had never explicitly said anything to her, but Cat could tell. Having been a teenage girl before, she knew that this was a delicate situation. From their first meeting, Cat had not been a fan of Joffrey, but knew better than to try to tear the two apart. She had hoped that Sansa would see her the error of her ways and end things quickly. But now, the two were facing almost a year together and there was no end in sight. Everyday she saw her once vibrant daughter fade and wilt under Joffrey's influence. It broke her heart to know that Sansa was so unhappy. 

 

In fact, the only time Cat saw Sansa even remotely happy was when she was with Jon or talking about Jon. Cat had certainly always liked the boy since the two had become friends. At this point, she practically thought of Jon as another son and she knew her husband felt the same. It wasn't a wonder why her daughter considered him one of her closest friends. But something had been bothering her for a while. Why would Sansa want to go through all this trouble to throw the poor boy a party that he clearly did not want when she had never done the same for any of her other friends?

 

The answer became clear to her as she “accidentally” peered out the window into the driveway to see Jon and Sansa embracing each other tightly. When she saw her daughter give him a kiss on the cheek it was all but confirmed.

 

_Whether they know it or not, those two are in love with each other._

 

Cat smiled to herself as she walked away from the window with a purpose. She now had a new mission. She was going to do everything in her power to try to get them together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> Yes this surprise party actually happened and I really fucking hated it! I was NOT happy to walk into this ambush and literally every single person in attendance knew it. I was giving off some seriously pissed vibes. But of course, I eventually calmed down and had a swell time. But I tell you what, now everybody fucking knows not to throw me a surprise party ever again. So I got that going for me... which is nice. :P
> 
> It all went down pretty similar to how I portrayed it here. Although I don't believe it actually happened on my birthday. I think it happened a few days before to throw me off the scent. And I couldn't remember how exactly M tried to get me to come over so I just made something up for Sansa.
> 
> The party did have a luau theme though. Everybody had a lei and there were little umbrellas for drinks and everything was very tropical. They foolishly tried to get me to wear the grass skirt and the coconut bra, but that shit was definitely not happening. So one of my friends gladly took it instead. Thinking back, M really went to a lot of trouble for this and I do feel kind of bad for hating it so much at the time. Oh well. *shrugs*
> 
> Unfortunately, T was present at the party. I don't believe he was as uncomfortable as Joffrey was here and he was definitely not as clingy either. But I do think he was pissed that M was ignoring him for me and the other guests. And let's be real, she totally fucking was! :D
> 
> Come next chapter and the start of senior year, we will be seeing AP stat class. That was totally real. Guys, I am not a math person. So clearly I was pretty fucking stupid to take an advanced math class. The things we do for love.
> 
> I am sorry to say that in real life there was no hug or kiss on the cheek at the end of the party. That was all for the story. God, if that actually had happened I almost certainly would have died on the spot. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed that little Catelyn POV. During Act 2 we'll probably be seeing a few POVs from random characters. Cat was a fun one because M's mom totally came out later after M and I got together and claimed that she had known all along. So I wanted Cat to have that feeling as well. She will definitely be trying to work some magic to get Jon and Sansa together.
> 
> Next chapter will be the start of senior year and all the fun that goes along with it! Thanks for reading! :)


	8. Temptation Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First day of senior year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of updates. I had planned on having quite a few more chapters done by this time, but I'm a terrible person so yeah... oh well. Anyway, here's a new chapter! It's kinda mostly filler, but it does help to set up a couple future plot points. Hope it's worth the wait!
> 
> Big thanks to my girl Kelly for the gorgeous moodboard! ❤️ (Bet you almost forgot you made this one :P)

The ringing bell sliced through Jon’s daze to remind him where he was - Mr. Cerwyn’s 1st period AP statistics class. He usually didn't sleep well the night before the first day of school and last night was no exception. But instead of the familiar anxiety of starting something new, it was Sansa that had haunted him and kept him awake for most of the night. She had been doing that a lot lately.

 

He thought he’d done very well for himself after his surprise party. Sure, he’d nearly crashed his car after that kiss on the cheek, but it was totally fine. Friends showed affection for other each other every now and then, right? Rationalizing and overthinking became an everyday occurrence of his. He was constantly waging an internal war between his head and his heart. His head usually won out, but that didn't stop Jon's heart from beating only for Sansa.

 

After his birthday, the rest of summer seemed to pass by quickly. During that time Jon had done his best to try to keep his distance from her. "Out of sight out of mind" became something of a mantra for him. He knew it would be impossible to keep up forever, but he had thought that maybe he could get a couple weeks if he was lucky. But when had Jon ever been that lucky before?

 

Sansa was maybe almost too good a friend, constantly checking in with him and seeing how he was doing. It was a bit annoying really. He was proud of himself for how often he was able to politely rebuff her many invitations to hang out. He threw out excuse after excuse to try to keep her at bay, but even then she was relentless, texting him all the time and even forcing him to sign up for Facebook so that they could be even more connected. Despite Jon's hesitance to bend to her will, he could only say no to her so many times. She was exhausting his resolve.

 

Jon's self-imposed distance from Sansa finally ended late in the summer when he’d accidentally let slip in a text message that he had never been to the local drive-in theater. Naturally, she’d been appalled at his confession and all but kidnapped him that evening, saying she would not take no for an answer. It had been just him and her that night. Sansa had looked every bit her gorgeous self. Young and carefree - her hair falling in loose waves on her shoulders as she bobbed her head and sang along to the music on the radio.

 

Jon hadn’t been able to stop himself from imagining that they had been on a date that night. But it wasn’t the truth. There was no hand holding. No hugs. No kisses. No nothing. The only romance between the two was what he projected onto them. It was simply just two friends seeing a movie together at the drive-in. Nope, nothing romantic about that at all. Unable to trust his own body, Jon had been careful to maintain a respectful distance in the car the whole night. It didn’t matter how much he wanted her, Sansa wasn’t his. He could respect that. He had to respect that. There was no other option.

 

By the time she dropped him off later that night, Jon couldn’t remember anything about the movie. He couldn't have named any of the actors or anything about the plot. Her smile and her laugh were the only things he kept in his memory.

 

And so summer ended and the first day of school arrived. Would it probably be torture to see Sansa everyday? Yes, but he had no choice. He told himself that he needed to take it day by day. If he could make it to the end of the school year without losing his mind, he figured he'd probably be in pretty good shape. Was that going to be an impossibly difficult task? FUCK. YES.

 

Due to his poor sleep the night before, Jon had been the last student to AP statistics that first day. Everyone else had beaten him to their seats. Counting himself, there were just nine students total. Jon had known ahead of time that it would be small, they had just barely had enough students sign up to make the class.

 

Sam had sat in the middle of the room in the front row with Gilly directly behind him in the second row. Sansa was to the left of Gilly with Jeyne on the left of Sansa. Seeing an opportunity to potentially protect his own sanity, and not really knowing where else to sit, Jon took the open seat on Sam's left, directly in front of Sansa. As he sat down and settled himself, he repeated his mantra inside his head.

 

_Out of sight out of mind. Out of sight out of mind. Out of sight out of mind..._

 

“Ready for some fun, Jon?” Came a throaty whisper from behind him. Her warm breath on the back of his neck made a shiver run down his spine.

 

He slowly turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. Sansa was leaning so far forward she could practically rest her head on his body. Jon could easily count the light dusting of freckles on her nose and cheeks.

 

“Umm, I guess so?” He squeaked out and turned back toward the board as Mr. Cerwyn stepped up to the front of the class. Jon took a deep breath and tried to concentrate on what the teacher was saying and not on the fact that Sansa had 22 freckles on her face.

 

_Fuck me, this is gonna be harder than I thought._

 

*******

 

One of the biggest perks of being a senior at Winterfell High was the possibility that one might be lucky enough to have his/her locker in the highly sought after senior locker bank. Located in a good-sized alcove right off the main entrance of the school, the bank held approximately 50 or so lockers for seniors only. Both spacious and centrally located, seemingly just about every student dreamed of one day having their locker in the senior locker bank.

 

Sansa was no exception. It might have been silly to others, but to her it felt like she was finally getting some of the recognition she deserved. Everybody who was anybody was in the senior locker bank and by some miracle, she and all her best friends somehow got lucky enough to be placed there.

 

Sansa, Jeyne, and Gilly were all relatively close to one another on the north wall, while Sam’s locker was located in the middle island and Jon’s was on the south wall. Maybe it wasn’t exactly the perfect placement, but they were all still together in a sense. And togetherness was exactly what she needed.

 

Sansa was feeling more and more isolated lately. It was like everyone was pulling away from her in one way or another. That is, everyone except Joffrey, the one person she would love nothing more than to never see again. She knew that he was the real reason behind her increasing loneliness. Sansa was no idiot, she very aware that her family really didn’t approve of their relationship. Her friends might have been a bit more tolerant of Joffrey, but only so much. She and Joffrey had just "celebrated" their one year anniversary a few weeks before school started and it had done nothing but fill her with sadness. Every single day she hated herself for letting their sham of a relationship get this far.

 

Joffrey was just as bad as ever, constantly running hot and cold. He could switch from a gooey boyfriend to a monstrous jerk at the drop of a hat. It was positively maddening. To make matters worse, he was becoming ultra clingy. For some reason, ever since Jon’s birthday party it was like Joffrey couldn’t stop trying to assert his "claim" over her. He’d send her text messages and want to talk on the phone at all hours of the night. It was beyond exhausting. Mentally, emotionally, and physically.

 

It was at these times that her thoughts would wander to Jon. She turned to him more and more as she felt her grip loosening. He was like a lighthouse she could always swim to. She was probably killing him with her friendship, but he was always just so wonderful and that was what she craved. So maybe she texted him too much or tried to spend more time with him than she should. And if she found excuses to touch him a little and flirt with him, that was ok, right? Friends did that sort of thing every now and then. Nothing was ever going to happen anyway. Jon wasn't interested in her and she wasn't the kind of girl to cheat on her boyfriend. Even if that boyfriend was a total prick.

 

In an effort to find some peace of mind, Sansa had taken to spending her afternoons walking outside. By the start of school, she knew her entire neighborhood as well as any map. It was relaxing in the fresh air and it gave her the opportunity to work through all the thoughts in her head. Nearly all of which were focused either on her failed relationship with Joffrey, her dream relationship with Jon, or her increasing worry over whether she could finish her academic goals.

 

School was a welcome reprieve for Sansa. It was a place she could be surrounded by her friends and all the work would no doubt be the perfect distraction. Homework was the perfect excuse to not spend time with Joffrey and she would have plenty of it. Taking all AP classes will do that to a person. To keep her dream of being valedictorian alive, she knew that she just had to maintain her grades. If she could accomplish that simple task, Sansa should have absolutely no problem achieving her goal.

 

She had already begun planning her next steps. First valedictorian, then undergrad, then med school. She had always liked the idea of becoming a doctor. It was a prestigious position and she would be able to help people. It was a win-win. She wondered if Jon had been thinking about his future as well. Knowing him, probably not. She made a mental note to ask him about his plans sometime soon.

 

For the most part, the first day of senior year was going well for Sansa. Her classes were filled with friends and seemed as though they would be easily manageable. Of course the biggest disappointment was that Jon was only in one of her classes. She mourned the fact that she hadn't gotten the chance to sit next to him.

 

_It sucks, but really it's probably a good thing. This way I don’t have to constantly sneak glances at his adorable face and distract myself from the lesson. Yeah this is better. There's nothing great about looking at Jon from behind anyway... Ugh, who am I kidding? Watch me have a newfound appreciation for the back of his head by next Monday._

 

As Sansa was leaving the cafeteria after lunch, she spied a mop of inky curls flopping down the hall toward the senior locker bank. She quickly raced to catch up to him, hoping to get the chance to chat. Even if it was just for a moment, it would be worth it. He was putting a book in his locker when she came up behind him.

 

“Hey Jon, how’s the first day treating you?” she asked his back.  _You know, it actually is a pretty good back..._ He stilled for a moment before he relaxing and continuing his task.

 

“What do you expect me to say, Sansa? It’s school. It sucks.” He gave her a smirk over his shoulder. Sansa tried not to pay any attention to how her heart sped up from just that small gesture. “What’s your next class?”

 

Sansa had already memorized her schedule, but for some reason she found herself needing to take the paper out of her pocket to confirm. “Umm, I have AP art next."

 

Jon finished his business and closed his locker. Slipping on his backpack, he turned to face her and shot her a grin. “Well I’m heading in that direction, mind if I join you?” he asked, offering his arm to her like they were in some bygone era. _Look at this adorable dork._

 

“How could I possibly say no to that, Jonathan?” She took his arm and they walked together in step. The halls were crowded with students moving to and from class, but with Jon beside her, she could almost fool herself into believing that they were the only two people in the school. She moved her body closer to his subconsciously.

 

“Bummer we don’t have lunch together, huh?” He lamented, glancing at her as they walked on.

 

“UGH I know! Don’t remind me!” She said, positively exasperated with the situation. “It’s not fair that you, Sam, and Jeyne all have the same lunch. Like what the hell? How is that even possible? Gilly and I are all alone!”

 

“Could be worse, at least you have Gilly. If it makes you feel any better, lunch was totally awkward without you there. You’re like the glue that holds us all together. The three of us just make things weird for ourselves. Now I can't speak for Sam and Jeyne, but I for one, missed you dearly.”

 

Sansa took his words to heart and blushed. Wanting to change the subject, lest she embarrassed herself further, she inquired, “What did you think of stat this morning?”

 

Jon sighed. “I think it's going to be hard and I'm really not looking forward to it. Hopefully I can manage a decent grade. Hey, have I told you lately that I really hate you for making me take that class?”

 

She rolled her eyes and laughed. “Yeah only like every day. Give it a rest, dude. Besides, I'm in the class with you and if you ever need any help you know where to find me.”

 

He broke out in a warm smile that lit up his entire face. She loved those kind of smiles. They were rare for him to show off and they always improved her mood. They were one of her favorite things in the world. 

 

"Or you know, maybe not," Sansa teased, unable to stop herself. "You are aware that I'm a very busy woman. Maybe someday you'll come asking around for me and I'll be washing my hair or be out on a hot date with Joffrey or something." She cast her eyes up at him hoping he would tease her back. She loved bantering with him.

 

But Jon did not banter back. He didn't even look at her. His smile vanished in a flash and his jaw clenched. She could feel the muscles in his forearm twitch and tighten under her fingers.

 

_What did I say? What just happened?_

 

Before she could think of something to do that would make him smile again, they arrived at the art room.

 

Jon tugged his arm back gently in an attempt to get Sansa to let go. She held on firmly. He cleared his throat. “Well this is where I leave you. Got to get to history on the second floor,” he said, poking his thumb in the direction of the nearby flight of stairs behind him.

 

Sansa wanted to say something - anything - to fix whatever had just gone wrong between them. But she wasn't sure how. Instead she simply let go of his arm and took a step away from him. “Yeah ok. Thanks for walking me to class, Jon. See you later?” She hoped her voice didn't come off too eager and desperate.

 

His eyes studied her for a moment. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but then closed it again and shook his head.

 

“Of course," he said with a smirk. "You can't get rid of me that easily. Even if you do have to wash your hair or whatever ridiculous thing you come up with.” He rolled his eyes at her and left her with a small wave of his hand.

 

Sansa waved back and took a deep breath before entering the art room and finding her seat. She spent the entire class wishing she was a real artist. Then she could draw one of Jon's smiles. That way she would always be able it look at it when she was feeling sad.

 

*******

 

The bell ringing was a welcome sound to Jon's ears. Finally the day was over and he could go home, relax, and not think about Sansa. Of course that would be easier said than done. She infiltrated his every thought and all his leisure activities. He couldn’t listen to music anymore without every song lyric reminding him of her. And he couldn’t watch any movies or TV shows or read any books without her clawing her way into his brain somehow. 

 

As he fiddled with the combination of his locker, he went over a mental checklist of what he could possibly do to distract himself from her that evening. He was so busy in thought he kept messing up the combination and had to keep retrying it. After seven attempts he finally managed to concentrate long enough to crack the code and open the lock.

 

“Hello? Earth to Jon?” Came a silky voice to his right.

 

“Huh? What?” he asked, whipping his head over and seeing a pretty blonde girl at an adjacent locker. “Oh, hi Val. Sorry, did you ask me a question or something?”

 

“Yeah I was only trying to ask how your day was. But from the looks of you just a second ago, I'd say not maybe not so good.” She smiled and winked at him saucily.

 

"It's not my fault! I couldn't remember the damn combination," Jon argued, blushing fiercely under her gaze. "My day was ok, I guess. How about you, Val? Think Mrs. Glover's class will be easy?”

 

Val nodded. “I think it'll be alright. My brother said her projects are a real bitch though. I guess it is an AP class after all. Anyway, I'm gonna head home now. Have a wonderful rest of your day, Jon. See you tomorrow,” she said with a smile, grabbing her backpack and purse and shutting her locker.

 

“Ok, see you then," he returned as she walked off. With that, he turned back to his locker to finish gathering his things. It hadn't been more than five seconds later before he felt someone tapping him on the shoulder.

 

_Goddammit can't I have one minute alone at my locker without someone bothering me today? I swear to god, this senior locker bank is like the worst thing to ever happen to me._

 

Slumping his shoulders in defeat, he craned his neck to catch a glimpse of the latest person to bug him, only to immediately perk up at the sight of Sansa.

 

“Oh! Hey Sansa,” he greeted, turning back to finish gathering his things.

 

“What were you doing talking to Val? I didn't know you two were friends.” 

 

_That's weird. What does she have to do with anything?_

 

“Val?" He asked curiously. "I mean, we have a few classes together and our lockers are always pretty close so I guess we're kind of like pretty good acquaintances. Friends would be a big leap though. Oh! But there was that one time I accidentally fell right into her tits.”

 

“YOU WHAT?” Sansa all but shouted with a bewildered look on her face.

 

Jon blushed at the memory, turning back to his locker. “Ok I don't know why I'm telling you this, but last year Sam and I were walking down the hall and I tripped on someone's backpack and stumbled right into her cleavage. It was all over in an instant. She was super nice about it, but I was beyond mortified. Guess I did get a pretty good eyeful though.”

 

Jon chuckled, shut his locker, and threaded his arms through the straps of his backpack. When he turned back toward her, Sansa was chewing on her bottom lip and looking down her body, almost like she was mulling something over.

 

Thinking maybe she was weirded out, Jon decided the best course of action was to apologize. “I'm sorry, Sansa. That was probably too weird. I shouldn't have-"

 

“No! No it's fine. I was just... thinking about... something else." She waved her hand dismissively and shook her head. "Hey, do you think maybe you might want to come over to my house or like go get some ice cream or something? Just to kind of celebrate the end of the first day of school?”

 

Jon found himself at a crossroads, unsure of which path to take.

 

_Do I want to hang out with her? Yes. Should I hang out with her? No. Absolutely not. I'm supposed to be trying to distance myself from her and hanging with her is definitely a step backwards. You can do it, Jon. Fight it. She mentioned going on hot dates with Joffrey earlier. Just let her down easy and then she can go run to her boyfriend instead. Stop falling into these traps, man. You're only hurting yourself here. She'll be fine._

 

“I want to, Sansa, I really do. But I, umm, I think maybe I should just...”

 

Once her face started to fall, Jon knew he didn’t have the strength to go through with the rest of his rejection. He was weak. One look into those sad crystal blue eyes and he was a goner.

 

He sighed internally, hating himself. “You know what? Fuck it. Let’s go get some ice cream. My treat.”

 

She looked back up at him and her eyes now twinkled with happiness. The smile that spread over her features made him feel more alive than he'd felt all day. 

 

“Come on, kid,” he said, throwing an arm around her shoulders, “if I'm paying, you’re driving!”

 

_God you’re so pathetic, Snow. You keep giving in to her and she’s gonna wind up killing you._

 

"Ok, but I'm getting the biggest sundae they have with extra hot fudge. And you can't stop me!" Sansa teased, melting into his side and wrapping her arms around his middle, squeezing him tight. Jon couldn't help but squeeze her back as they laughed and made their way out to the parking lot.

 

_Well maybe death wouldn't be so bad..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> 1st period AP statistics man... Advanced math first thing in the morning? Yeah, not the best way to start the day lol. It was a super small class and the seating situation was exactly how I described it. I sat right in front of M. I don’t exactly remember the reasoning behind that, but it very well might have been a self-preservation kind of thing. Out of sight out of mind was totally my mantra. I was heavily trying to hide my feelings and whatnot around this time. It's only gets harder from here.
> 
> The senior locker bank was a real thing. Those lockers were highly coveted and if you had one, it was like being in an exclusive club. Well sort of... I haven’t been back inside my old school since I graduated, but after M and I left they started doing some remodeling and renovations. By the time M’s little sister graduated, there was no more senior locker bank. Such a shame. Pour one out for the homies yo. 
> 
> M had a separate lunch from the rest of us for senior year. I won't lie, it was kind of weird. M was totally the glue that kept us together. She also had all AP classes that year and I believe the year before as well. She was hella serious about school, folks. She did take AP art and while she might have passed the AP test, she's a shit artist. She would 100% agree with me on that. She definitely had her eyes on that valedictorian prize though and totes had her future all planned out. I on the other hand did not, but we'll get to that next chapter.
> 
> Val is based on a girl I knew. The real Val was always very nice to me and I will admit that I did have a bit of a crush on her. Our last names both started with the same letter, so our lockers were always close by each other. And as I mentioned in a previous chapter, the whole cleavage thing never happened in real life. Val will have an important role to play in a future chapter, so be on the lookout for more of her soon.
> 
> I'm all about equal opportunity suffering here so I really wanted to give Sansa a little taste of jealousy in this chapter. I can't say for sure that there were very many jealous moments for M in real life, but this is my fic so why should Jon be having all the fun? Sansa needs to suffer a bit too lol.
> 
> Oh, and for anyone wondering, that drive-in non-date never happened. SORRY! There is an amazing drive-in theater nearby that I had not been to at that time. It wouldn’t be till the end of senior year that I would actually go there for the first time, but I really liked the idea of having Jon and Sansa going on a just friends non-date at the drive-in. Although the ice cream thing is real. We totally did that as just friends.
> 
> And, as always, basically all the touching and hugging you see here never happened in real life. God we were so fucking awkward lmao!
> 
> Next chapter will be deeper into autumn. Loads more mutual pining and another Catelyn POV! Back with more in a (hopefully) much timelier manner!


	9. Running On Empty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bad date leads to something good for Sansa. Jon gets into an uncomfortable situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figure since the school year is once again upon us for all the kiddos, it's about time I give ya'll a bit more of this sweetness. :)
> 
> Are there typos in here? Maybe. Do I care? Yes. Am I going to go back through and fix them? Probably not. Deal with it! :P
> 
> Chapter title and included lyrics are from the Jackson Browne [song of the same name](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WhDTS2AeLw).

_And one more piece of tape here. Ok, that ought to do it. Shit the time, better get out of here before he catches me._

 

Sansa hurriedly went back to her locker to stash her supplies, keeping an eye out for Jon. So far, her plan had gone off without a hitch. She still didn’t quite understand what had possessed her to wake up so early and do this, but it was all in good fun. She could not wait to see the look on his face.

 

From the corner of her eye she saw a familiar mop of dark curls and took cover behind her locker, just in case he were to look for her there. He didn’t. He kept his head down and walked towards his own locker. Once he passed, Sansa grabbed her backpack, shut the door, and raced to get a good vantage point.

 

When Jon finally reached his destination, he looked up and stopped dead in his tracks. Sansa saw his cheeks go pink and his face form a kind of begrudging smile. He shook his head slightly and mouthed “what the fuck?” while his fingers reached out to gingerly wrap around a balloon string.

 

As if he knew she was there watching, he turned his head to the side and locked eyes with Sansa, giving her an incredulous look. She just shrugged and laughed as she waltzed over to join him.

 

“Really Sansa? Happy birthday balloons… 'he’s legal?' What the hell is this? I’ve been 18 for months now you know!”

 

She cackled at him. “Oh come on, you know it’s funny. Don’t be such a party pooper.”

 

“Yeah yeah yeah whatever. Now I gotta stuff all this shit in my locker or face the humiliation of my peers,” he grumbled as he fiddled with the combination lock.

 

Sansa leaned her shoulder against the the wall and watched him try to hilariously maneuver a balloon into his locker. “At least it looks like you have friends, Jonathan.”

 

“I have friends! People know that! ”

 

“Uh huh, could have fooled me. When was the last time we hung out properly? Like two weeks ago? That’s FOREVER!”

 

Jon ducked his head down, ashamed. “I know. It’s just- I’ve been busy with school picking up and everything. You know how it is.”

 

“You’re talking to the girl that’s taking all AP classes and just got a new job. I think I get it. Hey speaking of which, why haven’t you visited me yet? Come on dude, I know you like ice cream.”

 

Guilt etched onto his features. Sansa felt a little bad. She didn’t really want him to feel guilty, but she missed him. She could feel him pulling away and she didn’t quite understand why. She knew fall was a busy time, but she still wanted to see her friend. Was that so wrong?

 

“I’ll come sometime soon. I promise, Sansa,” he said with an earnest smile.

 

“You better.”

 

Just then, Val glided gracefully up to her locker. Noticing the “HE’S LEGAL!” sign, she snickered and winked at Jon, who blushed further.

 

_UGH! Take your perfect honey blonde hair and your big boobs and go away, Val! We don't want you here!_

 

Trying (and failing) to not let Val’s presence bother her, Sansa instead decided now was the perfect time to make their exit. “Come on, let’s get to stat, Jon. We don’t want to be late.”

 

“Oh yes of course, that would be the last thing we’d ever want to do,” he rolled his eyes and shut his locker forcefully in an attempt to keep the balloons inside. They walked side by side with Sansa's mind racing the entire time.

 

_If it wasn’t for school, we’d barely ever see each other. And even then, it’s pretty much just the back of his head. I need to think of something and I need to figure it out soon. I’m going crazy over here. I need my Jon fix._

 

All the rest of the school day, Sansa tried to come up with any idea to get Jon and her together after school. It wasn’t that she couldn’t come up with anything, it was more that all the ideas she thought of seemed _WAY_ too desperate and needy. That was the last thing she wanted to come off as, even though that was how she truly felt on the inside.

 

She still hadn’t come up with anything good by the time Joffrey picked her up for their date later that night. He had been talking up his friend's band for weeks now. They had just gotten a big gig at a local bar and Joffrey just couldn't wait to go and support his friend. Sansa didn't necessarily want to go to some smoky bar to hear a (probably) terrible band play, but at least he wouldn't expect her to talk to him during the show. When they arrived at the bar, Sansa was turned away for being underage. Something Joffrey apparently hadn't counted on. He was livid that she wasn’t allowed in, more so at Sansa than anything.

 

He grabbed her arm and all but dragged her back to his car, ranting and raving the entire time while she just sat there and took it.

 

“I can’t believe- This is all your fucking fault you know! Why didn’t you try harder to get in? Show some fucking cleavage or something? God, Gregor is going to be so disappointed now. He was expecting me. Thanks a lot, Sansa.”

 

“I’m sorry, Joffrey. I didn’t mean to,” she apologized, shrinking into herself in the car seat. She always felt so very small in these moments. Boldly, she asked, “Where are we going now?”

 

His eyes pierced hers ruthlessly. “ _You_ are going home and _I_ am going back.”

 

“But, I thought we were-”

 

“You thought wrong.” His tone was final as he drove fast, trying to get her back to her house as soon as possible. It took everything Sansa had to not cry in front of him. She didn’t want Joffrey to see her tears. She didn't want to be pathetic.

 

_It’s all my fault. I ruined everything. I’m so stupid._

 

Pulling into the driveway, Sansa took her seatbelt off and scrambled to get out of the car, figuring Joffrey would prefer it that way. She opened the door and made to get out, when she was stopped by a hand on her arm. Joffrey pulled her back in slightly and gave her a slimy smile.

 

“You know, I could've left you back at the bar to fend for yourself. But seeing as how I’m such a nice guy, I think I deserve a little something for bringing you back home.”

 

His eyes flicked down to her lips and then he tilted his head down to his crotch before moving back up to look her in the eyes.

 

_No._

 

“Come on Sansa, I don’t have all day. Gregor’s waiting," his tone was what he used when he knew he was going to get his way.

 

With a tight smile, Sansa leaned in and gave him a quick peck on his wormy lips. But he was too fast for her and he grabbed her head in his clammy hands and held her face to his, trapping her there. Joffrey swallowed her yelp of protest and deepened the kiss.

 

_No no no no no no…_

 

Sansa shut her eyes tight as his tongue invaded her mouth. When she felt his hand leave her face and start to trail down lower, she quickly ripped away from him and left the car with a quick goodbye in his direction.

 

She didn’t look back as he peeled out of her driveway. Feeling disgusted with herself, she sat down on the concrete for a minute, not wanting to go back inside just yet.

 

_I’ve barely been gone 30 minutes. What am I  supposed to tell mom? I’m so stupid. I fucking hate myself._

 

She contemplated staying outside for the next couple hours, but in the end she decided to just go inside and get it over with.

 

*******

 

From the couch, Catelyn heard the click of the key in the lock and the swing of the door. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was barely past 7:30. She hadn’t been expecting Sansa back home for another two hours at least.

 

_What in the world has that rotten boy done now?_

 

Sansa came creeping through the kitchen and into the living room, collapsing on the couch with her mother. She had the look of barely contained distraught.

 

“Back so soon?" She asked gently. "I thought you were going to see a band?”

 

“Well we were, but that kind of fell through... so he just brought me home instead.”

 

“Oh. Well I’m sorry, dear. If you need to talk about it…”

 

“What are you watching, mom?” Sansa asked instead, eyes glued to the TV and ignoring Catelyn's inquiry.

 

_Ok, she’s not ready. I won’t push her. I won’t. But she clearly needs something, I'm not just going to sit here and do nothing. Oh! I’ve got it!_

 

“Oh just another crime documentary. This one’s not very good, I’m afraid,” Catelyn waved her hand dismissively. “You know, there’s a new show premiering tonight. A ghost hunting show.”

 

Sansa visibly perked up at that. “Yeah?”

 

_Do I know my daughter or what?_

 

“Yep. I think this one's going to be a good one too. What do you say we bake some cookies and watch it together?” _Now for part two of the plan._ “Hey, while we're at it, you should invite Jon over too!”

 

“Jon?” Sansa questioned, her voice unusually high. She coughed to try to fix it. “Why would we go that, mom?”

 

_Oh honey, you’re not very subtle are you?_

 

“No reason.” _Smooth, Cat._ “I just think Jon might enjoy and he hasn’t been over here in a couple weeks. And don’t tell him I said this, but I miss the silly boy. Plus we're making cookies! He won’t turn us down.”

 

Sansa chewed on her bottom lip and wrung her hands together. Catelyn recognized her nervous habits. “But what if he doesn’t want to come over? It’s a school night and-”

 

“Sansa, you can’t live off what ifs. Take a chance. Besides, this is Jon we’re talking about here. Just tell him we’ll make him any kind of cookie he wants. You’ll see, he’ll come. And if he refuses, tell him that I won’t take no for an answer. He listens to me.”

 

“Ok, mom,” she agreed with a small smile.

 

_There, that’s better._

 

“Alright, I’m gonna start the oven and gather the ingredients. You call him so I know what cookies I’m making.”

 

Sansa pulled her phone out of her purse and dialed his number. As Catelyn went about her business in the kitchen, she listened intently to Sansa’s half of the conversation.

 

“Hey Jon!”

 

“Oh no, yeah that fell through… Anyway, I wanted to know if you could come over tonight?” She asked hopefully. Sansa looked back at her and Catelyn gave her daughter a thumbs up.

 

“Well there’s a new ghost hunting show on and mom invited you over to watch it with us. Oh! And she said she’ll make you any kind of cookies you want. And she wants you to know that we won’t take no for an answer. Remember, you owe me one mister.”

 

Cat could hear the teasing smile in her daughter’s voice and it made her heart happy.

 

“You will? Great!” Sansa turned and returned the thumbs up with a big grin.

 

“Yes we will Jon, it’s the least we could do. Don’t be stubborn! Chocolate chip? Ok great! See you in a little bit! I’m so excited! Bye!”

 

Sansa flipped the phone shut looking positively giddy. It was a complete 180 from how she walked in the door. Cat mentally patted herself on the back for coming up with this on the fly.

 

“So chocolate chip then, dear?”

 

Sansa nodded as Arya popped her head in the kitchen.

 

“Did someone say chocolate chip?”

 

Catelyn rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Yes dear. You’re just in time to help your sister and I make some cookies!”

 

“Oh man, but I-”

 

“Jon’s coming over and we’re going to watch a ghost hunting show.”

 

Arya blinked a few times and went to wash her hands in the sink. “Well why didn’t you just say that to start with?”

 

_Jon Snow has no idea the effect he has on my girls._

 

“Ok, let's get baking!”

 

*******

 

Arya really didn’t like baking, but she sure enjoyed the result. The cookies were delicious fresh out of the oven. Ooey-gooey melt in your mouth chocolately chip amazingness. So what if she burned the roof of her mouth a little bit? It was soooo worth it.

 

The ghost show wasn’t even scary at all. But honestly, she hadn’t really expected it to be. She had seen the first three _Saw_ movies after all - she knew scary. But still, a nice heavy blanket around her was comforting in all the spookiness with all the lights out.

 

It was so exciting having Jon over without Joffrey. He was the worst. Always so rude and slimy. Arya hated him. She didn’t understand what Sansa saw in the guy. Why would she want to be with someone like that? It didn’t make sense to her.

 

_Jon on the other hand, he's so nice and sweet and cute. Really cool and funny and has the best taste in music. We need more of him and less of Jerky Butthead._

 

Hearing laughter, Arya glanced over to where Jon and Sansa were sitting on the couch. In the soft glow of the TV, she could see them smiling like a couple of idiots. Not that that was anything new. They were best friends after all.

 

_Oh, but this is new…_

 

Arya stopped watching the show and instead started watching Jon and Sansa. It was fascinating. Jon would watch Sansa’s face and then hastily look away and shove a cookie in his mouth when she turned towards him. And Sansa would look at Jon and smile and blush prettily when he caught her looking at him. They looked happy together. It was actually kind of gross.

 

Normally Arya might have been a little jealous, she was still nursing a bit of a crush on Jon after all. But now as she watched him and her sister, she decided that she liked the two of them together. She liked how smiley and happy they were. Arya would never admit, even under extreme torture, but she did want to see her sister happy. And she'd been so sad recently, this was a very welcome sight.

 

_Jon and Sansa should be boyfriend and girlfriend. I want it._

 

Arya turned her head to glance at her mom and saw her watching Jon and Sansa too. She caught her eye and they shared a knowing smile.

 

_Oh yeah, this is so happening!_

 

*******

 

The heat of the late afternoon sun blazed down upon the WHS track. Despite it being well into autumn by now, the heat was almost punishing. Fitting really as that's almost what Jon wanted. He ran around the track at full speed, sweat dripping off him in rivers. His body felt like it was about to die. He knew he was pushing himself too hard, but he couldn’t stop now.

 

Running was becoming a new hobby for Jon. Admittedly a rather healthy one, but he wasn’t really doing it for health reasons. Or at least, not in the physical sense. He was really only in it for his sanity. He didn't really remember how he decided to start running, but one day he just felt the need to be outside and to try to outrun his problems. He found out quickly that by concentrating on the movement of his body, he wouldn’t have to think about anything else. More importantly, he wouldn’t have to think about Sansa. That’s really what running came down to - a way to forget about her for a short time.

 

Right now with his feet pounding the track, his mind was totally blank. But Jon knew that the second he stopped, shewould instantly invade his mind again. He was in a losing battle - trying to prolong the inevitable. His legs were tired, his lungs were fit to burst, and his side felt like it was being ripped open. The only sounds he could hear were his harsh breathing and the slap of his shoes on the rubber track as the sun tried to bake him alive.

 

_Keep moving. Keep moving. Keep moving…_

 

But his mantra mattered little when his body was finally pushed to the limit. His mind was screaming at him to keep going, but his body was physically unable to. Jon went on a crash course, slowing down and stumbling to the grass on the inside of the track. He fell to his knees completely exhausted. He felt the churning of bile in his gut and, unable to hold it back, splattered the contents of his lunch into the grass before him.

 

“Oh god…” Jon groaned, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Fuck...”

 

He collapsed onto his back and tried to catch his breath, the blades of grass tickling his naked torso. Just like he knew would happen, Sansa’s face was the first thing he saw in his mind’s eye. He hated himself and his stupid heart.

 

_Just fucking kill me._

 

Jon laid in the grass for some time before getting up and walking back to where he’d stashed his shirt and his water bottle. Grabbing his things, Jon slung his shirt over one shoulder and took large gulps of water. It only did so much to slake his thirst.

 

He slowly limped back to the school building. Class had been out for hours now, so he didn’t bother with putting his shirt back on. He was just going inside to grab his bag out of his locker real quick, he figured it was highly unlikely anyone would see him anyway.

 

Stepping into the building and feeling the frozen blast of the air conditioner was such a welcome reprieve, Jon stood there for a moment just basking in the cold. Figuring he better get a move on, he wound his way through the cafeteria, all the while keeping an eye out for any lingering teachers. Nearly at his locker, he turned a corner and came face to face with a wide-eyed Sansa and Jeyne.

 

He blushed under their gaze and cleared his throat.

 

“OH! H- hi Jon, what are- What are you doing here so late?” Sansa asked a bit breathless, eyes glued to his chest.

 

_Great, I’m disgusting her. I’m all sweaty and gross and she can’t look away. It’s like a trainwreck or something. I knew I should have just put my damn shirt on._

 

“I was uh, just out running-”

 

“In this weather?” Jeyne interected. “Why would you do that? It’s a heatwave out there!”

 

“Yeah I uh, kinda figured that out,” he said bashfully, not wanting to meet their eyes. “What are you two still doing here?”

 

Sansa licked her lips and snapped her eyes up to his. “Umm, we were just hanging out in Jeyne’s dad’s room. Homework and stuff.”

 

“Yeah. Homework… and stuff.” Jeyne finished lamely, still staring at him.

 

Jon was extremely uncomfortable, like he was under a microscope. He decided to wrap things up.

 

“Well speaking of homework, I have my own I need to get to so yeah…”

 

“Oh, ok Jon.” Sansa gave him a sweet smile even as her cheeks tinted pink. “See you tomorrow for ghost hunting?”

 

Jon smiled. He actually couldn't wait. “As long as there's cookies. See you tomorrow, Sansa. Bye Jeyne.”

 

“Bye, Jon,” the girls said in unison as they started to walk past him. He prayed they wouldn't smell him and his undoubtedly rank body. His hopes were dashed when he heard the two girls giggling from behind him as they walked out the door.

 

_Ugh, I knew it. Fuck me, right?_

 

Quickly opening his locker and grabbing his backpack, he slammed it closed and hurried back through the cafeteria and out of the building towards his car. Still not bothering to put on his shirt, he threw his stuff in the passenger seat and cranked the ignition. The A/C came on full blast and it felt like fire from having sat out in the heat all day.

 

The radio was tuned to the local classic rock station and blared out the tail end of a song through the crappy car speakers.

> _(Running on) Running on empty_  
>  _(Running on) Running blind_  
>  _(Running on) Running into the sun_  
>  _But I'm running behind_  
>    
>  _Honey, you really tempt me_  
>  _You know the way you look so kind_  
>  _I'd love to stick around but I'm running behind_  
>  _(Running on) You know I don't even know what I'm hoping to find_  
>  _(Running blind) Running into the sun but I'm running behind_

 

Jon shook his head and shifted the car into drive. “Jesus, Jackson Browne. You really know how to cut to the core, huh?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> Yes, M did surprise me one morning with balloons and a lovely little poster on my locker that read, "HE'S LEGAL!" I was rightfully mortified. By that time I had been 18 for months. I was hella embarrassed. God I still cringe a bit thinking about it, even though truly it was hilarious. My wife is such a jokester.
> 
> Sansa mentioned getting a new job. M got a job an an ice cream shop sometime during senior year. She used to bug me all the time to come and have her serve me ice cream. As you read in the story, Jon is a bit hesitant to go see her there. He's still trying to create some distance just as I was. The ice cream shop will make an appearance in a future chapter, so I won't say much more there.
> 
> The credit for Sansa dissing Val in her head goes to Madeleine and her hilarious comment on the last chapter.
> 
> Ok, Sansa's date with Joffrey. This date isn't necessarily based on any specific date M went on with T. It's purely from my imagination, but I think it's true to the spirit of something that might have happened back then. I've tried to stay away from outright showing Sansa on these dates, just because I didn't really want to write them for my own personal reasons. But it's come to my attention that maybe you all need to see just exactly what Sansa is dealing with here. I know some people have asked, "Why is Sansa still with Joffrey? What is she waiting for?" So I'm just gonna go into a little quick explanation.
> 
> The big thing to remember here is that this is a toxic and emotionally abusive relationship. Thanks to Joffrey, Sansa's self-esteem is at an all-time low. She takes the crap that he throws at her and she blames herself for things that make him unhappy. She knows it's not right, but she just can't think otherwise. Fear really is the driving factor in their relationship right now. Sansa has never really been in anything serious like this before and Joffrey is pretty much the worst example on how to be a good boyfriend. In her head, she knows that this is not normal, but she's not brave enough to try and make a change in her life yet. She's too afraid of the potential consequences.
> 
> Now this ties into Cat's POV as we see her try to prod Sansa gently to talk. She obviously doesn't say anything, but that let's Cat know that her daughter simply isn't ready yet. She knows that eventually Sansa will come around, so she just needs to be patient. No one really knows exactly what is happening between Sansa and Joffrey. People that are looking closer have a decent idea, but Sansa has yet to divulge that information with anybody and she will continue to remain silent for the time being. But that won't stop Cat from trying to push Sansa in another direction.
> 
> So that brings us to the ghost hunting show. Anybody ever watch Paranormal State? *sigh* I loved that ridiculous shit. Whenever it aired, I was invited to M's house to watch the show and have cookies and milk. And I'm pretty sure that T was never there sooooo good fucking times. Oh yeah, M's mom knew exactly what she was doing.
> 
> Oh and I hope you enjoyed the little peek inside Arya's head. That was unplanned and just sort of happened as I wrote. But now that makes two characters (that we know of) who are aware of something going on between Jon and Sansa. THERE WILL BE SCHEMING! Oh, and the real life Arya LOVES the Saw movies so that's legit.
> 
> Now the end scene with Jon's POV definitely needs some context. This moment is based on a couple different experiences. If you remember, I said that I was in band during high school. Now where I live, marching band is basically a sport and we used to practice outside on the blacktop in the blazing heat for hours on end. Now I'm almost positive they don't allow this anymore, but when I was in school they gave the boys in the band the option to take their shirts off when it got too hot. The girls were not allowed the same privilege. #sexism #feminism #freethenipple
> 
> ANYWAY, I can recall two separate occasions when I worked myself so hard from practicing that I had to run off to the side and throw up. Just puke my guts the fuck out. Not pretty. I can remember specifically after one of those times I puked that I got in my car to go home and I shit you not, the radio was playing "Running on Empty." Like well played universe, my tummy was totes empty.
> 
> Now tying in to the whole no shirt thing, there was one time we were coming in from band practice and I ran into M who was just leaving for the day. I was all shirtless and sweaty and we only talked for like a minute or so before we went our separate ways, but I SWEAR THIS IS A REAL MEMORY! M calls bullshit and claims that if I had been shirtless in school she would have remembered. So I don't know, who you gonna believe? :P
> 
> Thanks for reading folks! Next chapter will find Jon having to make an important decision or two. More soon!


	10. What A Fool Believes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon narrows down a few things. Sansa hears something she didn't expect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What? Did you think I had abandoned this fic?
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> I'M BACK BABY!

“Goddammit this is annoying,” Jon muttered to himself, dropping his pencil and stretching his right hand.

 

His bed was piled high with college applications. For weeks both Sansa and his parents had been bugging him to start thinking about his future. It was difficult to think about when he felt so stuck in the present, but he was doing his best to try. Jon had never been particularly fond of school and the idea of four more years of it was not super appealing, but he figured that college was his best bet to find a good job. What that would be though, he had no idea.

 

He’d managed to narrow it to two colleges: the University of Oldcastle and Torrhen’s Square University. Both great schools with a lot to offer. Oldcastle was a well-established prestigious university. A lot of his friends were already planning on going there. He would no doubt have a good time and get a good education.

 

TSU, on the other hand, he’d not thought much of. But it had quickly climbed the ranks of potential schools for one gigantic reason. Sansa. She had seemingly all but committed herself to going there. Obviously nothing was official at this point, but everyday he leaned closer and closer to TSU. Solely because of her.

 

Needing a break from college plans, he pushed the applications to the side and grabbed his notebook instead. He flipped the pages until he landed on the one he’d been looking at far too much over the past couple weeks. There on the lined paper were the names of the most eligible bachelorettes at Winterfell High. Or at least the ones that Jon felt like he might possibly have a shot with.

 

He’d been hopelessly in love with Sansa for roughly five months at this point with absolutely nothing to show for it but an aching heart. He was so tired of being in a constant state of pain. Sansa was not his and she wasn’t going to be anytime soon. There was no point in waiting around for something that had no chance of happening. So he’d decided to make a list of all the girls he could potentially be interested in. He’d spent hours scouring the yearbook for names. Mentally going over every girl in his classes just so he could have a thorough list.

 

Once he’d been satisfied, he had slowly started crossing the names off one by one. He wasn’t going to ask just anyone out. He wanted there to be some kind of connection. Any sort of kinship or spark. He didn’t want some random girl he didn’t even know at all. He wanted someone he could hang out with and enjoy his time spent with them. Someone who actually liked him. Someone like…

 

_Don’t you even fucking think it, asshole. This is the entire reason you’re doing this. So you don’t have to sit around and mope about her. Move the fuck on already._

 

Going over the list of names, he chuckled at the sight of Daenerys Targaryen scratched out beyond almost all recognition. That one was never going to happen. There were very few names left on the list. Jeyne was there. As was Alys Karstark and Beth Cassel. Although he’d all but ruled out Jeyne because it would probably be way too weird. Alys and Beth were a toss up though. He didn’t really know either very well, but they were nice.

 

Val was the last big name on the list. Honestly, she was the most appealing option of all of them. They were friends. They’d had multiple classes over the years. She was nice and would occasionally flirt with him. Jon was sad and lonely. Practically a match made in heaven.

 

Jon’s phone buzzed in his silent room, Sansa’s name flashing on the screen distracting him from the other girls on his brain.

 

“Hello?”

 

“Hey Jon! What’s up?”

 

“Oh umm…” _Just thinking about other girls. No biggie._ “I’m just working on college stuff. Trying to figure out what I’m doing next year.”

 

“Come on, Jon, TSU! You and me together? Wouldn’t that be so much fun?”

 

_You have no idea._

 

Jon coughed. “Yeah. Yeah it would. It’s on my list. Just trying to cover all my bases right now though.”  


“Ok fine. Be that way,” Sansa huffed. “Hey do you think you might want to take a break for a while? We need to work on your suit. You know, pick fabric and what not.”

 

Jon groaned. When he’d agreed to go to senior prom with Sansa earlier in the year he had not anticipated her to go all out. He should have known better. She’d told him that prom had to be special. This year she and her mother were going to make her prom dress and somehow she had gotten it in her head that he should also have a custom suit to match her. So Jon, in his infinite wisdom, had obviously agreed. Her mother had taken his measurements and everything. That experience was bound to go down in his own personal awkward moments hall of fame.

 

“Hey I heard that groan, mister! We can’t keep putting this off forever! Prom is in like five months. Time is wasting, dude. That suit is not going to make itself.”

 

Jon could hear the smile in her voice. It was infectious.

 

“Ok ok fine. Let me just tell my mom I’m leaving. I’ll be over soon.”

 

“Oh no. You don’t have to worry about that. We’re actually already in your driveway waiting on you.”

 

“You’re what? And just who exactly is this we?”

 

_Please don’t be Joffrey..._

 

“Just me, my mom, and Arya. No big deal.”

 

Jon breathed a sigh of relief. “Arya? Why would she come along? She doesn’t like this kind of stuff.”

 

“I don’t know. She wanted to come. Far be it from me to stop her.”

 

“Ok fine. Be out soon.”

 

“Great! See you in a minute!” Sansa chirped happily.

 

Jon hung up the phone, tossed it on his bed, and fell back onto his pillows.

 

_It’ll only be for a little bit. A quick drive to the store and back. Just nod and agree with everything she wants to make it go faster. Quick and painless. That’s what this will be._

 

He repeated that over and over in his head as he readied himself. Quick and painless. Of course, when he stepped outside and caught a glimpse of her auburn hair through the windshield, his chest seized up.

 

_Fuck. Quick and painless my ass. This is gonna to be brutal._

 

He opened the door to the backseat and slid inside next to Sansa.

 

“Hello Jon,” Catelyn turned to greet him. Arya swiveled from the passenger seat and smirked at him.

 

“Uh, hi.”

 

“Ready to find some fabric?” Sansa beamed. “This is going to be so much fun!”

 

Jon simply nodded and turned away, resting his burning forehead on the cool window. Not even a minute in her presence and he was already on fire. This was going to be torture.

 

*******

 

Tyrell’s Fabric was a magical place for Sansa. Mountains of cloth strewn as far as the eye could see. She and her mother often frequented Tyrell’s when they were working on a project. It was always a joy to find something new there. And sharing this store with Jon was something she’d been wanting to do for a long time.

 

“Hey, so when are you going to come visit me at work?” Sansa teased him as they perused the swaths of fabric.

 

Jon looked down and grimaced.

 

_Busted!_

 

“I’m sorry. Cerwyn is killing me lately with stat. I’m buried in homework.”

 

Sansa scoffed at his lame excuse. “Dude, come on. You know you could come over to Darry’s after school and I could help you! Hardly anyone comes in during weekday afternoons. I’m offering free ice cream and math help! What more could a guy want?”

 

Jon laughed. “Not much. I promise I’ll try, ok?”

 

“You better! OH! What do you think of this one?” She asked, holding up a wild print. “Pretty cool, huh?”

 

“Ha ha very funny,” he responded, pushing the paisley patterned fabric out of his face. “I thought we were supposed to match. I doubt you’d be caught dead wearing this monstrosity.”

 

“Fair point. Mom and I decided on a purple dress. It’s going to be amazing, but it’s a surprise so you’ll just have to wait and see, mister. I’m guessing you probably don’t want to wear a purple suit?”

 

“Nah he probably just wants to wear all black like he does every other day of the year,” Arya chimed in, having appeared out of nowhere.

 

“Hey, I wear other colors…”

 

“Yeah like grey and navy,” Sansa giggled. “You really need to upgrade your color palette, Jonathan.”

 

Jon frowned, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his jacket.

 

_He is so adorable when he’s slightly offended._

 

“Leave the poor boy alone, girls,” her mother chided. “Now what do you think of this one, Jon?”

 

She held up a dark grey fabric that was soft to the touch.

 

“I like that. What is it?” Jon asked, feeling the material between his fingers.

 

Catelyn smiled. “Velvet. It’s a bit on the expensive side, but I think we can manage to buy enough for your suit.”

 

“Expensive? No hold on, I don’t need anything expensive,” Jon interjected. “We can get something cheaper. Or I can just rent a suit.”

 

“Nonsense. Don’t worry yourself, Jon. We are offering to make this for you. We’ll pay for everything ok?”

 

Jon looked distressed, but nodded. “Ok. If you’re sure.”

 

“Positive. Now you kids look around for a minute and I’ll go purchase this fabric.”

 

Sansa smiled watching Jon and Arya joke about. She couldn’t wait for prom. With Jon by her side, everything was going to be perfect this year. Not that last year was bad, but Joffrey definitely brought things down. Senior prom would be just them and their friends. There was no reason to worry.

 

_Maybe even by then Jon and I could be together..._

 

Sansa internally chastised herself for thinking such a thing. She was still with Joffrey after all. It had been over a week since she'd last seen him. He’d been off visiting his grandfather down south in Casterly Rock. Surprisingly he hadn’t texted or called her. And she hadn’t tried to contact him either. It should have made her felt guilty, but being free of him for a while had filled her with nothing but relief and lightness.

 

_It could be like that all the time if you wanted..._

 

Sansa sighed at herself as her phone buzzed. She flipped it open to see Joffrey calling.

 

_I think I jinxed myself._

 

Stepping further away from Jon and her sister she answered the call.

 

“Hello?”

 

“Hey babe. Whatcha doing?” Joffrey voice sounded over the phone.

 

“Just at Tyrell’s with my mom, Arya, and Jon. Trying to find some fabric for Jon’s prom suit. I think we’re going with velvet.”  


“You know, I’m still mad they won’t let me go with you. That is such a stupid rule. No one over the age of 21 allowed. What a crock of shit.”

 

“Yeah… it really sucks,” Sansa offered, hoping she sounded convincing.

 

“What are you up to after? Want to come by my house? My family will be gone all night. We could have a little fun.”

 

Sansa knew exactly what kind of fun he was talking about. So far she and Joffrey had not done much of anything other than make out. He’d tried to push her into trying other things, but for the most part she had been able to resist him, telling him she wasn’t ready yet. That was the truth. She absolutely was not ready to go any further with anyone. Especially Joffrey. It was just very difficult to tell him that. So she did her best to simply avoid those kinds of situations.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry Joffrey, but I already made plans with Jon for the evening,” she lied.

 

“You did?” he whined in her ear. “Well isn’t this just perfect. I get home after being gone a week and the one night ever I have the house to myself-”

 

He cut himself off. For a moment, Sansa thought he’d hung up the phone. She pulled it away from her ear just to make sure he didn't.

 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were getting back today,” she apologized.

 

“I was trying to surprise you. It’s not your fault. It just… sucks.”

 

For the first time in a long time, Sansa thought Joffrey sounded sincere. Almost like he was actually sad. She wasn’t going to give in and go over there, but she could maybe offer something esle to him.

 

“Well would you maybe want to come hang out with us? I’m sure Jon won’t mind. That way you’d get to see me.”

 

_What am I doing? Why did I say that? Please say no!_

 

Joffrey sighed heavily on the other end of the line. “Fine. Only because I miss you so much, my little lion cub. Let me know when you all get back to your house and I’ll come over, ok?”

 

“Can’t wait, see you soon,” Sansa said with a flat voice, hanging up the phone.

 

_Well... shit._

 

Sansa rejoined Jon and her family. Clearing her throat, she spoke.

 

“Hey mom? Would it be ok if Jon came over after this to hang out and stay for dinner?”

 

“Of course, dear. Jon is always welcome,” Catelyn nodded.

 

Turning to her friend she asked, “So Jon, would you like to come over to our house after this?”

 

Jon smiled. “Yeah sure.”

 

Arya let out a whoop of excitement.

 

_Ok, here goes. Moment of truth._

 

“And would you all mind if Joffrey came over too?”

 

Sansa was enveloped in silence. Jon’s face fell briefly before it slipped back into indifference, Arya scowled, and her mother blinked in confusion. She felt the need to explain herself.

 

“It’s just, we haven’t seen each other in a week and Joffrey kind of insisted. He really misses me.”

 

“It’s alright with me, dear,” her mother said with a tight smile. Arya just huffed and walked away.

 

“Jon?”

 

He shook his head and smiled. “Umm, yeah I guess that would be… cool. Why not, right? Haven’t seen him in a while myself.”

 

Sansa breathed a little easier. This was good. They could get along. At least for tonight.

 

*******

 

After five hours, a steak dinner, and two movies, Jon was dying to go home. It probably would have been a great night if not for Joffrey having shown up. His entire presence just made everything tense. All the Starks seemed much more relaxed without Joffrey around, but the minute he’d stepped inside their house everyone acted differently.

 

Jon tried so very hard to keep himself in check. He didn’t want to come off as a broody asshole, but it was so extremely difficult to sit there in that house and see Sansa and Joffrey together. He spent almost the entire evening fuming inside his head and feeling sorry for himself. The moment that second film ended, he jumped up, raring to leave.

 

“Well it’s getting late,” Jon said, stretching his arms up to the ceiling. “I should probably be heading home. It is a school night after all.”

 

“I can drive you,” Sansa offered, making to stand.

 

Joffrey put his hand on her leg to keep her sitting. Jon wanted nothing more than to rip it off his body.

 

“Oh don’t worry about that, Sansa. I should probably get going myself. I can take Jon home. It’ll be on my way.”

 

_OH GOD PLEASE NO!!!!!_

 

“Are you sure, Joffrey?” Sansa asked. “I wouldn’t want to put you out.”

 

“No trouble at all. It’ll give us a chance to get to know one another a bit better.”

 

Jon sighed internally, his stomach sinking. “Yeah sure. Thanks Joffrey.”

 

Bowing his head in defeat, Jon thanked Catelyn for dinner and said his goodbyes. Grabbing his jacket, he raced out the door. Joffrey and Sansa followed behind.

 

Before opening the car door, he glanced at Sansa. She looked almost sad.

 

_Probably didn’t want Joffrey to go so soon._

 

“Bye Sansa. See you tomorrow,” he said quickly, slipping into his seat. He barely heard her wish him goodbye as he shut the door. He stared at nothing through the windshield and took deep breaths, one after the other, trying to prepare himself for this ride from hell.

 

Joffrey’s car was relatively nice. A bit on the old side, but well taken care of. It was extremely neat inside. Almost too neat. Practically museum quality. Even through Jon's jeans and jacket, the leather seat was freezing. And the lingering smell of Joffrey’s cologne made him want to gag. Wondering what was taking so long, Jon cocked his head to look out the window. 

 

_I think I might actually vomit._

 

Joffrey had Sansa hugged tightly against him while he slobbered all over her. If Jon could have gouged his eyes out in that moment, he would have done it. No questions asked. He turned away, face red and eyes shut tightly. He wasn’t a total idiot, he’d assumed that the two of them probably did things like that. But seeing it happen right in front of him was completely different than simply assuming. Now Jon had unequivocal proof of their love. And it was absolutely devastating.

 

_I can’t do this anymore._

 

With his eyes closed and his ears ringing, Jon never even registered Joffrey getting in the car and pulling out of the driveway until the blonde spoke.

 

“So where to, kid?”

 

Jon came out of the fog. “Huh? What?”

 

“Where do you live?” Joffrey said slowly. “I don’t know where I’m going.”

 

“Oh... yeah. Take a left up here.”

 

Joffrey drove on with Jon giving him directions every now and then. But other than that, he kept silent. He desperately wanted to roll down the window and get some fresh air. Now with Joffrey in the car with him, the smell of his cologne was unbearable. With each passing moment Jon felt more and more claustrophobic.

 

_This is it. This is how I die. Surrounded by all the things I hate. RIP me._

 

Joffrey was the first to break the silence. “So you and Sansa are pretty close, right?”

 

“We’re friends,” Jon said plainly.

 

Joffrey tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. “Best friends I hear. Sansa hardly ever stops talking about you. It’s always _Jon this and Jon that_. Bit annoying really.”

 

Jon ignored the flutter in his tummy. “Take a left at the light.”

 

“Ok. Well anyway, I was just kind of wondering if you would help me out?”

 

Jon narrowed his eyes and glanced over at him. “Help? With what?”

 

“Christmas is coming up soon and I’m at a loss for what to get Sansa. So I figured maybe you would know since you two are such good friends.”

 

Jon did not miss the edge in his voice as he spoke the last two words of that sentence.

  
  
“You’re her boyfriend.”  


“Yeah well that doesn’t mean I know everything about her.”

 

_You should._

 

“Come on, man. I just want her to have a good Christmas. Between you and me, I’ve been kind of a dick lately and I want to make up for it. So what do you say, will you help me with Sansa or not?”

 

_Goddammit. I can’t fucking believe this shit... Anything for Sansa._

 

“Yeah sure, I guess so. Turn into this neighborhood up here on the left.”

 

For the rest of the ride Jon gave Joffrey a number of ideas that he thought Sansa might like. To his surprise, Joffrey thanked him sincerely and promised to be in touch if he had any more questions. Jon agreed with a tight-lipped smile and exited the car, feeling like a prize fool.

 

Jon walked into his house, greeted his parents briefly, and marched straight into his bedroom. Toeing off his shoes, he climbed onto his bed and retrieved the well-worn notebook of bachelorettes from where he had stashed it. Pen in hand, he confidently crossed off Jeyne, Beth, and Alys. He circled Val’s name.

 

It was time to move on.

 

*******

 

Sansa stood bored behind the counter of Darry’s Ice Creamery. Besides Lyman working in the back room, she was all alone. So far only a few customers had come in, mostly schoolkids looking for a sweet treat. Much to her chagrin, none of them had been Jon. She was starting to think he might never come and see her at work.

 

_I don’t get it. Why doesn’t he want to come and goof off with me? I would give him free ice cream! Literally all of our friends have come in and Jon is the only hold out. What gives? There’s no way he’s that busy. Something must be up._

 

Sansa’s mind wandered as she thought of Jon. He’d been distant lately. More so than usual. She’d noticed that he wasn’t looking her in the eye much. And his smile was lackluster, if he even smiled at all. She’d been aware of it happening more and more since the school year started, but ever since Joffrey had driven him home that night it had been especially prominent.

 

_Oh my god! What if Joffrey said something to him that night? Like threatened him or something? Shit. I knew it was a bad idea. I should have just taken him home myself like I wanted to. I should have insisted. Shit. Maybe I can get to the bottom of this. I’m sure I can fix it._

 

The bell on the door signaled an incoming customer. Sansa looked up, pasting a smile on her face. Despite her wishing it to be the one person she wanted to see most, it wasn’t. It was just Val and her giggling group of friends.

 

_Figures._

 

“Hey Sansa,” they all greeted her enthusiastically.

 

“Hi, what can I get you?”

 

She dutifully scooped out ice cream for all the girls, hoping that they might take their treats and leave. But she had never been that lucky.

 

“Hey girls go grab us a table, I just need to talk to Sansa real quick,” Val told her friends, taking a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth.

 

Sansa was torn. She was not in the mood to have a one on one chat with Val. Really, she didn’t want to talk to her at all - and that made her feel guilty. Val had never actually done anything to make Sansa to feel this way. Sure, she had flirted with Jon a few times, but that wasn’t a crime. Who wouldn’t flirt with Jon? It’s not like Sansa was dating him anyway. Val was free to flirt with whomever she liked. Still, it had hurt to see Jon in the path of her charms. So she’d been unintentionally holding a bit of a grudge ever since.

 

_At least Jon doesn’t seem to be interested in her at all. Not that he’s interested in me either of course. Just… yeah.... whatever._

 

Eyeing Val’s friends at their chosen table, Sansa asked, “So what did you want to talk to me about?

 

“Ok, you are never going to believe this! Jon asked me out today. Jon Snow!”

 

Sansa blinked. Her heart dropped to her stomach and her mouth went dry. “What?”

 

“I know! Crazy right?” Val had an incredulous smile on her face as she spooned another bite of ice cream into her mouth.

 

“I don’t- How?” Sansa was struggling to breathe evenly. Her knees felt weak. She braced her hands on the counter to stay upright.

 

_No no no no no this is a nightmare!_

 

“Ok so when I opened my locker after school a little note fell out. I was like, who’s leaving me notes? What is this middle school? Anyway, it was short, but so sweet. Just Jon telling me how pretty I am and how if I was free he’d like to take me out on a date.”

 

“Oh my god…” Sansa gripped the counter tighter.

 

Val continued, oblivious to Sansa’s current state. “I know right? So weird! I didn’t even know he liked me like that!”

 

Sansa’s chest felt like it had caved in on itself. She felt the sting of tears in her eyes. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to hold them at bay.

 

“Yeah… that’s… crazy. What did you say back?” She asked the beautiful blonde in front of her, feeling every bit like the masochist she was. But she was already in this deep, she had to know the rest.

 

“Well that’s the thing, I wasn’t able to say anything at all. I waited and waited for Jon to show up at his locker, but he never did. He must have skipped out early. Probably too afraid of my reaction,” Val giggled.

 

_God me too._

 

Sansa swallowed thickly, her body shaking slightly. “So what are you going to do now?”

 

_Probably go out with him. Get married. Have a million gorgeous babies. Be the happiest couple ever. And then rub it all in my face while I waste my life with Joffrey because I’m a coward who can’t make up her mind and just do something for herself for once in her goddamn life._

 

“I think I’m gonna send him a message on facebook here in a little bit,” Val sighed. “Just let him down easy, you know?”

 

“What?!” Sansa exclaimed a bit too loudly, drawing the attention of Val’s friends. “But I thought- Don’t you like him?”

 

“I mean sort of? Jon is cute and funny, but he’s not really my type. I don’t want to make things weird between us. Plus, I’m kind of already seeing someone at the moment.”

 

Sansa nodded, her heart racing. “Yeah sure... I get that.”

 

_Uhhhh… NO I DON'T! Are you fucking kidding me? Who the hell in their right mind would not want to go out with Jon Snow? What. An. Idiot._

 

“So yeah, anyway just thought you should be aware since you're such good friends. Like just in case he’s all extra broody or whatever. Now you’ll know the reason,” Val shrugged.

 

“Well thanks for telling me.”

 

“No problem! Thank you for the ice cream!”

 

With a smile, Val bounded off to her friends, leaving Sansa alone to drown in her thoughts. Her body felt like it had just gotten off a rickety old roller coaster. She was exhausted.

 

_This is terrible. Jon likes Val?  I can’t believe he actually asked her out. That must be why he’s been so weird lately. God this sucks. Here I thought I might have a chance... Nope, it doesn’t matter. Besides, Joffrey has been really sweet lately. So there’s that. Oh, but poor Jon… He’s going to be so upset when he gets her response. I hate this. Why does everything just have to suck so much?_

 

Not knowing what else to do, Sansa wiped down the counter and let her mind wander. She could cry later. Right now, she had a shift to finish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> REALITY CHECK:
> 
> College applications suck. This is a fact. I don’t even really remember filling them out all that much but I do remember that I did them mostly on paper. I’m sure now it’s probably all online. Man that would have been so much easier. Much like Jon, I had to make a choice between two universities. One with a few of my friends. And one with M. I had always seen myself going to the other school, but then the prospect of being alone with M two hours away from home was extremely tempting. As for which school I ultimately chose, you probably already guessed lol.
> 
> I didn’t actually have a notebook with crossed-out names of female classmates in it. I did have a running list of girls I potentially saw myself asking out, but I kept all that shit in my head. No paper trail. Can’t have that getting out there. :P
> 
> Prom planning was legit. Unlike Sansa, M did not make her own dress, nor was she actually interested in fabric or design. But for some reason she got it in her mind that I should have this custom made suit. I have no idea how this got started (and neither does she upon recollection), but me being the lovesick puppy I was, I obviously went along with it. Her mom bought nice velvet fabric. Measurements were taken. Fittings were done. It was a whole ridiculous ordeal. I promise I'll go into more detail on this suit during the actual prom chapter. This shit totally happens!
> 
> T, very much like Joffrey here, was always worming his way into things. I absolutely could have included him coming along on the fabric shopping because I can distinctly remember such an occasion. It was a nightmare for me, but it happened a lot. He was a constant annoying presence. As time went on I think T became more and more clingy of M. I'm sure it’s because he felt her starting to pull away from him.
> 
> I had to include Jon getting a ride home with Joffrey because I definitely endured the same with T multiple times. It was usually weird and awkward. Especially around this time when my feelings for M were so strong. Thankfully though, T never asked me for advice on gifts for M. Nor do I think I ever witnessed them kissing. If I did, I have repressed it so deep it will never see the light of day.
> 
> M did work in an ice cream shop for quite a bit of senior year. In all that time she was working I only went there once. And I had to be dragged there by my friends. It’s not that I didn’t want to go, it was more of a self-preservation thing. I needed some kind of separation. M still holds a grudge against me for that one lol. I’M SORRY BABY!
> 
> Ok, now the moment I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for. Yes I asked out the real life Val. And yes it totally blew up in my face. I had decided that I was wasting my life pining over M and I needed to move on. So I got it in my brain that maybe G (real Val) was the perfect candidate to help me do that. She was pretty and nice and flirty and actually seemed to like me. So in my lonely mind, it was a perfect match. 
> 
> I wrote out a little note and slipped it into her locker before last period. I cannot tell you how agonizing that decision was. I must have stopped and started a million times before I finally slipped that note in. This was huge for me. You have to remember that I had never asked any other girl out ever and I was pretty fucking shy. I figured a note would be easier than face to face. Now I had no idea how I would receive an answer to my question, but putting myself out there came first.
> 
> So all that afternoon I was on edge freaking out about school the next day. That evening I got a facebook message from G rejecting me. Obviously I was devastated lol. She handled it with grace and I replied back in kind. SHOT DOWN IN FLAMES.
> 
> So you might be thinking to yourself, “Why did I read this from Sansa's POV?” Well come to find out that G TOLD M THAT I HAD ASKED HER OUT RIGHT AFTER IT HAPPENED!!! I didn’t find this out till much later, but yeah she completely spilled the beans on me, much to M's discomfort. M told me later that her feelings were very mixed. She was upset and jealous that I’d asked out G because WHY HER? But then she said that she also felt bad that I was getting rejected by a girl she thought I really liked. Man... teen angst AMIRITE???? 
> 
> So yeah, all round bummer right here. Sorry about that. Not to worry though, I am desperately working on the next chapter as you read this. Really trying to get it done before Christmas since it will be a holiday themed chapter.
> 
> Oh and to leave you all on a much happier note, I will share with you that M and I are expecting baby #2! Come Valentine's Day 2019 we'll be adding another little girl to our family! We are very excited! Thank you all for your continued support of this story! ❤️❤️❤️

**Author's Note:**

> Drop me a line on tumblr [@chocolateghost](https://chocolateghost.tumblr.com)! :)


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